Peer Support Workers use their own lived experience of mental health difficulties to support others with empathy, understanding and hope.

Claire first came into contact with the Perinatal Mental Health Team as a patient during pregnancy, at a time when anxiety and previous mental health difficulties had become harder to manage. The support she received helped her make sense of what she was experiencing, build confidence and move forward.

Today, Claire has come full circle. She now works within the same team as a Peer Support Worker, using her own experience to offer other women the kind of compassionate, non-judgemental support that once made such a difference to her.

“I’m Claire, a Peer Support Worker (PSW) who has recently joined the Perinatal Mental Health Liaison Team. Prior to this, I was a patient under the same team!

My mental health journey has been a long one, eventually bringing me to this service when I became pregnant with my daughter a couple of years ago. Although I had worked hard on my mental health and had accessed services before, pregnancy caused a significant amount of anxiety and disruption to my life. My usual coping strategies were no longer enough, and I decided to open up about how I was feeling. A complicated pregnancy and complex history meant that I required more specialist support and treatment, so my bereavement midwife referred me to the Perinatal Mental Health Team.

When I first entered the service, I was ashamed, fearful and guarded. However, I found reassurance and support from the team from the very start, and over time I was able to make significant progress. I really valued the multidisciplinary nature of the team and felt this played a huge part in my recovery. Looking back on my experience, I can see the value of collaboration and the importance of supporting people to feel involved in their own care. I also began to reframe some of the traits I had previously viewed negatively. Rather than simply labelling myself as anxious or an overthinker, I started to recognise that these qualities could also mean I was thoughtful, caring, reflective and mindful. Learning to see myself differently became an important part of my recovery.

I first became aware of Peer Support during my own time as a patient. I attended play groups where mums and babies could meet in a relaxed and friendly environment, and a Perinatal PSW would sometimes attend. During a time when I was really struggling, she would reflect my strengths back to me and would provide helpful and non-judgemental support. Having someone who had experienced similar struggles helped to normalise what I was going through and reduce some of the shame I was feeling. She was able to connect with me quickly and naturally, in a different way from those in more clinical roles.

My time after discharge involved further self-work and improvement, building on the skills, understanding and support the Perinatal Mental Health Team had given me. I was able to return to work, finish university, enjoy motherhood, improve my wellbeing and embrace new experiences. I thought the whole team was incredible and they’d truly helped to change my life and my experience of becoming a mum. So, when I saw the advert for this role, I jumped at the opportunity to join them! I often say that the fact I am now able to work somewhere where I was once so vulnerable is testament to the psychologically safe, compassionate and supportive environment the team created for me. It feels meaningful to be able to contribute to that environment for others.

Having experienced both the service and significant mental health difficulties myself, I am now able to use those experiences to help others. I hope to offer women some of what was so valuable to me: a safe, consistent and non-judgemental space to support them in their recovery journey. I am really enjoying my role so far, and I feel very fortunate to now be able to support other women in their own recovery!

Find out more about our Perinatal Services.