Mental health articles

Basic rules of groups for mental health There are some basic rules in every group: • What goes on must be kept confidential. • Everyone should be prepared to listen to others and, when they feel comfortable, to share their own experiences. • No one should make judgements or criticise others. • Everyone must respect […]

The role of the group leader The role of the group leader of mental health The group leader can facilitate meetings in the following ways: • by welcoming all members (and at the first meeting by asking everyone to introduce themselves and to say what they hope will be achieved in the group); • by sharing […]

Setting up a support group Support groups are not easy to get going. They need, first and foremost, a group of people who are interested and committed to the idea. Not everyone is interested in support groups. Some people are not comfortable sharing personal feelings. They may not see the point of regularly meeting others […]

Some common questions about support groups How many members can take part? There is no perfect number. Most groups start off very small. If the group gets too large, then it is obviously helping many people. Smaller groups can then be worked out based on factors such as area of residence or age of the participants. […]

Support groups provide an opportunity for participants to share their feelings, problems, ideas and information with others who have a similar experience. The groups work by providing: • practical hints – for example, a mother of a mentally retarded child sharing how she manages her child’s temper tantrums, or a person with a drinking problem sharing how […]