peer support

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Peer support groups can be highly beneficial for individuals recovering from OCD, as they provide a safe and stigma-free space to share within a community that fosters recovery and personal growth. Facilitated peer support groups can provide support, motivation, hope, non-clinical advice, access to resources and are designed to complement professional treatment.

Do you know when peer support groups for OCD began?

Dr Jonathan Grayson, Professor Edna Foa and former patient Gayle Frankel co-founded the first peer support group for individuals with OCD in 1981. Originally designed as a means of preventing relapse, the ‘Giving Obsessive-Compulsives Another Lifestyle’ (GOAL) support groups proved highly effective when used alongside best practice treatment. Fast forward over forty years, lived experience Certified Peer Support and Peer Recovery Specialists like Chrissy Hodges and Shannon Shy continue to optimise the provision of peer support and share their expertise around the world.

With support from the experts, the Team at OCD WA plan to provide facilitated peer support groups for:

• Adults

• Children and youth

• People living with OCD plus other conditions, such as:

  • Neurodiversity

  • Eating disorders

  • Substance use disorders

• The LGBTQI+ community

• Culturally and linguistically diverse communities

• Carers and supporters