Peer support worker finds way out of darkness by helping others

The peer support co-ordinator for the Canadian Mental Health Association on P.E.I. says she has found her purpose in life.

It has been a huge turnaround for Ashley Belanger-Birt. She suffers from bipolar disorder, PTSD and anxiety. A few years ago, she was in hospital following a suicide attempt.

"I was pretty hopeless. I didn't think there was a way to get out of that darkness," said Belanger-Birt.

At the time there was no formal peer-support program on P.E.I., but a peer support worker from CMHA did come by to visit.

"This person showed me that by helping other people, by relating to how sick I was, that was my whole point in life," said Belanger-Birt.

'Oh man. I'm not alone'

Peer support workers are not professionals. They are people who share the same problems as the people they are trying to help. This can happen in one-one-one sessions, as with Belanger-Birt in her hospital room, or in groups.

Belanger-Birt said going to her first group session was a struggle.

"I dreaded it. My social anxiety caused me to not want to be around people," she said.

"When this little lady came in and started saying, this is how I felt, this is how I struggled, I was like, 'Oh man. I'm not alone.' Someone actually gets how I feel. You can tell your doctors and you can tell your family members but they don't truly understand."

Relating to the struggle

Belanger-Birt went from dreading the sessions to leading them, and is now in charge of three other peer counsellors. They lead groups, take one-on-one appointments, and sometimes even see people who are dropping in off the street at the CMHA offices.

"We're in between being a friend and being a clinician. We can relate to what they're going through," said Belanger-Birt.

"You'd be surprised how many people, that's all it takes, is just one voice to open up and say I'm really struggling."

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