What is Peer Support?
Peer support is an educational, supportive, collaborative, confidential conversation or encounter between two peers. Peer support is NOT therapy but can be used in tandem with therapy or other forms of treatment. Peer support is flexible, and can take many different forms, depending on each individual's need.
I can offer support in a variety of areas! My areas of specialty include relationships and attachment, emotional and nervous system regulation, sex and intimacy, communication and narrative systems, spirituality and values, routine and rituals, organization and space transformation, grief work, parenting, and support for queer, trans, and neurodivergent people.
I am open to offering support in whatever modality works best for each individual, whether that be through Zoom, a phone call, or in-person. For neurodivergent and disabled peers with differing support needs, I am able to offer a variety of in-person support services, including space optimization and transformation, especially to accommodate physical and sensory support needs.
About Me
My name is Jo Lake (they/them)
I am a queer, nonbinary, neurodivergent parent residing in Richmond, VA. I often refer to myself as a relationship enthusiast, and I am passionate about divesting from colonial and capitalist structures in order to create a culture of collective care, joy, and creativity (easier said than done, I know; wanna practice together?).
My educational background includes a BA in English from George Mason University, an MFA in Poetry from George Mason University, and an MA in Mental Health Counseling from The Chicago School. I am not a licensed therapist, but I have accumulated over 300 hundred hours of direct client contact providing therapy as part of my internship for my degree in mental health counseling and am able to employ those skills effectively in a variety of environments, including offering peer support.
My approach is intersectional, decolonial, abolitionist, and neurodiversity-affirming. I am polyamory, kink, and sex-worker allied, and utilize a harm reduction framework. I view the world through a narrative or story building lens and often utilize myths and metaphors to engage others in considering how they have constructed their individual worldviews. I also utilize a Polyvagal approach for mapping nervous system responses and exploring how our environment and development impact our patterns of response over time. I love incorporating creative and imaginative play and practicing not only intellectual and emotional processing skills but also skills that increase our capacity for pleasure and joy.
Ethical Guidelines
1
Voluntary
Peer support is voluntary!
I support and encourage your autonomy and your right to make choices that are best for you and your specific needs. I will never force, coerce, or pressure you into doing something, and I will assist you in advocating for your right to agency in all areas. I also retain the right to make my own choices about our work together and will communicate when I do not have the expertise or capacity to support you in certain ways. This service is voluntary for both of us.
2
Hopeful
Peer support is hopeful! I am here offering this support because I too have faced significant challenges in my life, and I know the difference it can make to have access to support, information, and resources. For many years I struggled to understand how to live my life in a way that felt aligned and supportive of my needs and capacity, but after years of study and practice I feel much more comfortable and aware of my needs and limitations, which has greatly improved my quality of life. A new world is possible, and we will build it together!
3
Open-Minded
Peer support is open-minded! I am here to meet you where you are with unconditional positive regard, and to help you figure out where you want to go and how you might get there (assisting you in creating your own map, if you will).
I will provide a safe space for you to bring up any concerns, questions, or musings you might have, and I respect your right to make your own choices about what you think will work best for you.
4
Empathetic
Peer support is empathetic! I will meet you with compassionate understanding, part of which is understanding that even if we may share similar life experiences or identities, I will never know exactly what you are feeling. I am here to validate your unique and individual experience and to offer you a reflection of yourself through emotional connection.
5
Respectful
Peer support is respectful! We each have something important and valuable to contribute to our interactions and the world at large. We will practice patience, curiosity, and kindness with each other, leaving space for our differences and encouraging one another to explore how those differences might strengthen our connection rather than divide us.
6
Honest
Peer support is honest and direct! Clear and thoughtful communication is essential to the peer support process and helps build confidence and trust. Honest communication moves beyond the fear of conflict or not meeting someone’s expectations and assists us in working together to resolve challenges with care and compassion, including issues related to stigma, abuse, oppression, crisis, or safety. Peer relationships should be built on a foundation of integrity, honesty, respect, and trust.
7
Reciprocal
Peer support is mutual and reciprocal! In a peer support relationship, each person gives and receives in a fluid and shifting manner, depending on the needs and capacity of each individual in any given moment. In peer support, each person has things to teach and learn, to give and receive. Power is equally shared, giving us both space to contribute to the dynamic and to collaborate with one another.
8
Strengths-Focused
Peer support is strengths-focused! We all have gifts, skills, and talents to share and to use to improve our lives. Peer support focuses on identifying strengths and resources that are already available to you and assists you in using them in new ways to explore and expand your dreams and goals and to increase your overall well-being.
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Transparent
Peer support is transparent! I will clearly explain what is and what isn’t part of the peer support relationship, so that you can make informed decisions about the services you are receiving. Peer support is not therapy and I will not be able to diagnose or treat you clinically. I also do not prescribe or monitor medication usage. Please seek out healthcare providers for these services.
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Person-Driven
Peer support is person-driven! Some of the worst human rights violations are experienced in connection with psychiatric and mental healthcare systems, where people are not seen as people but as case studies or objects of treatment, or are stigmatized, stereotyped, or outcast in some way due to their struggles and challenges. Peer supporters remain vigilant in disrupting and deconstructing any oppressive or dehumanizing language or practices (including internalized oppressive narratives and shame) to create a space of belonging for all.
11
Change
Peer support facilitates change! All people deserve agency over their lives and have the fundamental right to make choices that are most in alignment with their needs, dreams, and desires. Collective transformation begins with personal transformation. We must practice liberation for all in our interpersonal relationships if we hope to see it reflected in our larger global communities.