Part Two: Q&A with Chadwick
This is part two of a series of Q&As with Chadwick, Peer Support Specialist with the Grand Rapids NAVIGATE team. In our first conversation HERE, we talked about what peer support is, and how someone often gets started with peer support at NAVIGATE. Here, Chadwick discusses more about his approach to peer support and the importance of community.
Q. How do you support someone in making positive changes in their life?
As we discussed previously, peer support offers participants in our specialty care programs the chance to interact with someone who has relatable life experiences. One approach to helping someone make changes in their life is to look at strengths and where their interests lie, and develop some next steps from there. Another approach is looking at what they aren’t satisfied with, and how that can point to a new direction or changes that can be made.
As a peer support specialist, I’m never going to tell the person, “this is what you need to do.” Instead, I’m trained to ask questions like What are you risking by not making any change here? And what’s the risk of making the change?
When someone is feeling really dissatisfied with their life, it can feel risky or uncomfortable to make a change or try something new. But usually, that discomfort is totally worth it in the end for the positive change. Through asking questions and interacting with our participants, they make this kind of realization themselves. And through that process of identifying changes they want to make, they’re much more likely to actually act on it.
Q. What are some core concepts about the recovery process that you find are helpful to people?
I try to bring up some concepts that I’ve found personally helpful that are supported by research. For example, one study that looked at a multitude of factors involved in recovery found that one of the most important aspects was whether the person felt like they had control of their life. This can be a motivator to learn and practice coping skills and try new ways of taking control of small things in your life. The work that you put in may be difficult, and not everything you try is going to work for you. But building up that feeling of “I’m in control again” is really important.
I also bring up neuroplasticity. We’re finding out more and more about neuroplasticity and how the brain can change in response to our behaviors. For me, that idea offers hope that trying new things might result in feeling better – why not give it a shot and see if it works for you?
Creating a toolkit of coping skills is a big part of the recovery process. There are so many examples of things that work for people – it’s really about trying new things. I’ll often point to research that has shown the benefits of being surrounded by nature, how meditation has been shown to change brain waves, and how hobbies can leave us feeling energized, rewarded, and more in control.
Q. In your experience, what role does peer support play in helping someone become a part of their community?
Experiencing a lot of inner turmoil can make social situations feel extra challenging. The added pressure can make even a fairly straightforward interaction, such as checking out with a cashier at the grocery store, feel scary. Peer support offers a way to practice these interactions with an advocate. For example, if you haven’t been to the park before, and there are multiple pathways to walk, it can be hard to decide which path to take (How long is it going to take me? Will I be able to get where I need to go?).
Peer support can also help the person have the courage to engage in activities they’re interested in while also knowing that they can bow out at any point in time, and that they’re not stuck there just because they decided to try it out. An example is when I took the person to the yoga class. I just pulled them aside beforehand and said, “If at any point you feel like you need to leave, just give me a cue, and then I’ll make an excuse for why we’re leaving.” Sometimes having someone who can step away with you, even for a moment, to help you process emotions or take a break, makes it so you can overcome an overwhelming moment and stick with the thing you want to do.
Another example is helping someone learn the bus system. Instead of just sitting at a computer and talking about the routes, we actually went out and got bus passes, got on the bus, talked to the information desk, and asked the bus driver questions when we felt a bit lost. Doing this together offered the person the chance to practice and see for themselves that the people they approached wanted to be helpful.
In fact, we can have sessions solely focused on modeling communication. For example, I’ve accompanied someone to the store to pick out flowers for their partner, because they had never done something like that before. That also gave us the chance to practice what to say to the person’s partner. We also do this in group peer support sessions, such as a communication skills group that I facilitate. One of the sessions explored how words are part of actions. And that led to a discussion about how to make the most meaningful apologies. Then we explored how to tell someone if their apology isn’t good enough for you. The idea is that by practicing these types of common communication skills in a group setting, the person can help to foster healthier relationships in their day-to-day lives.
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To read more about the peer support model, how it’s different from both friendships and working with a therapist, and what drew Chadwick to become a peer support specialist, please check out part one of our conversation HERE.
About Chadwick:
I grew up in West Michigan and came back to be around friends and family for a more supported mental health recovery. I have a B.A. in Communication from Michigan State and an M.A. in Communication Studies from the University of Georgia. I have past experience teaching a variety of communication classes and also worked as an online tutor when I was struggling to feel able to work. I have been a peer support specialist for over a year and feel very grateful to have found the role and the co-workers that I work with now. In my free time, I like to try new foods, spend time with friends, and one of my recovery goals is to find more ways to enjoy nature.