Peer Group and Support Throughout New Hampshire

Peer support has become increasingly important in the treatment of those suffering from a mental illness. Peer support groups are beneficial because those who are attending are typically all there for the same or similar reasons. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, others in support groups share the same experiences, can help with new coping skills or strategies, understand the way you are feeling and have had the same challenges. Peer support groups offer emotional support, informational support, instrumental support, and affiliation support – a sense of belonging.

In the state of New Hampshire, there are multiple locations to receive peer support. The largest are the Peer Support Agencies (PSAs) located throughout the state. These are non-for-profit agencies that are contracted with the Department of Health and Human Services, Bureau of Behavioral Health. PSAs provide support by and for people with mental illnesses, and are geared towards helping people with recovery. Many of the PSA locations offer monthly educational events, activities that promote self-advocacy, wellness training, and other services on top of the physical peer support. There are 10 regions in the state, with a total of 16 PSA locations throughout.

Granite Pathways offers the Clubhouse Model, which originated in 1948 from the idea that productive lives could be created by working together on recovery instead of repeated hospitalization. In New Hampshire, there are two Clubhouse Model locations, one in Manchester and one in Portsmouth. Portsmouth’s Seacoast Pathways location also serves people in the southern Maine area such as Kittery. The Clubhouse Model allows members to work together to find success in their goals, education, housing, friendships, and recovery.

There are also many support groups offered through the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), located in Concord, New Hampshire. NAMI offers several support groups including family support groups, parent support groups, suicide prevention groups, grief recovery after substance passing groups, and many more. These groups are all led by a trained facilitator who is a parent, a consumer, or a family member. NAMI’s website also offers a resource line for peer support located throughout New Hampshire, including Clubhouses, PSAs, and two other support levels, along with other groups available to New Hampshire residents.