Peer support groups are led by people who have been through it, not by clinicians. That is the point. A facilitator who has lived with depression, lost a child, or gotten sober knows what the first meeting feels like from the inside. These groups are the largest part of the directory, most are free, and almost none require a referral.
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What a peer support group is
A peer group is mutual aid with structure. Someone facilitates, there are a few ground rules, and the content comes from the members. Nobody is treating anyone. Many are run by organizations with training programs behind them, such as NAMI, DBSA, GriefShare, and SMART Recovery, and some are independent groups that have met in the same church basement for twenty years.
- Condition-focused: depression, bipolar, anxiety, OCD, eating disorders
- Loss and transition: grief, divorce, job loss, caregiving
- Recovery: substance use, gambling, family members of people in recovery
- Identity and life stage: LGBTQ+, veterans, new parents, teens, older adults
- Skills and education groups taught by trained peers
What to expect the first time
Most peer groups let you show up without registering, and most let you just listen. Introductions are usually first name only. The listing tells you whether a group is drop-in or has a start date, whether it is open or closed to new members, and how to reach the facilitator if you want to ask something first.
Peer support or therapy?
Both help, and they are not either-or. Peer groups are a good fit when you want to be understood by people in the same situation, when cost matters, or when you are not ready for treatment. If you want a group run by a licensed clinician with a treatment plan behind it, see clinician-led therapy groups. Groups built on shared interests rather than a shared challenge are on the community groups page, and one-time offerings are under events and workshops.
Run a peer support group? List it free.
Free peer-led groups always list free, and the first 100 founding facilitators get a permanent free listing. The builder reads your flyer or web page and fills in most of the form. People searching this page are looking for exactly what you run.