Description:
A Peer Specialist is a person who has not only lived the experience of mental illness but also has had formal training in the peer specialist model of mental health supports. They use their unique set of recovery experiences in combination with solid skills training to support peers who have mental illness. Peer specialists actively incorporate peer support into their work while working within an agencies team support structure as a defined part of the recovery team.
The Certified Peer Specialist workforce in Wisconsin is composed of a number of strong and forward-thinking advocates. They demonstrate the ability to center choice and self-determination, as well as the recognition and validation of many pathways to self-defined recovery. Many find that the freedom to define their struggles and victories on their own terms and make meaning of their own experiences as they see fit as being instrumental in fostering a life worth living.
The CPS recognizes the people they support as the ultimate experts in what will work best for themselves. The CPS trusts and respects their peers’ decisions and advocates alongside them in order to ensure their needs are met in a person-centered, self-determined manner.
One of the most important values of a CPS is providing non-judgmental support to those they serve. Oftentimes people with lived experience have felt shamed and judged by the systems they interface with, even the systems and agencies meant to support them directly. An effective CPS serves as a validating and non-judgmental resource to their peers as they navigate the system and foster their own recovery and resiliency.