This five-session series will review The Pillars of Youth Peer Support, which consists of nine short videos. Each video will go over helpful information to support youth as you support your peers.

Each session will include watching 1 or 2 videos and opportunities to share thoughts and ask questions about how to support your peers as a youth.

One registration includes all 5 weekly sessions:

• WEEK 1 - Thursday, February 18, 2021, 4:30-5pm
• WEEK 2 - Thursday, February 25, 2021, 4:30-5pm
• WEEK 3 - Thursday, March 4, 2021, 4:30-5pm
• WEEK 4 - Thursday, March 11, 2021, 4:30-5pm
• WEEK 5 - Thursday, March 18, 2021, 4:30-5pm

What to expect from each session: 

Week 1: 

• Youth peer support 101: New to peer support, or want a refresher? Our Pillars of Youth Peer Support learning series is just for you! This video provides a brief overview of youth peer support, its key ingredients, what it is and isn't, and its role in supporting youth's mental health and well-being.
• Supporting your peer's journey: Everyone's life journey is different. This video discusses how to support and guide a peer's journey and the importance of promoting a sense of belonging by connecting peers to people, services, supports, and the community.

Week 2: 

• Communication considerations: Communication is key to providing youth peer support. This video shares important communication considerations (such as how to create a safe space and place for meaningful conversations) and focuses on the role of language, empathy, and reflective listening.
• Sharing your story: Your insight and experiences are worth sharing. This video talks about sharing your lived experiences and story in a hopeful and helpful way for you and your peer.

Week 3: 

• Working across differences: We are all unique. While shared lived experiences are a vital ingredient of youth peer support, in this video, we also highlight the importance of understanding and valuing how we are different and incorporating this understanding into your peer support practice.
• Supporting your peer through a crisis: We all go through tough times. This video focuses on how to support your peer through a crisis.
  • TRIGGER WARNING: in this video, we'll provide an overview of how to support someone who is considering suicide and will talk about the importance of breaking codes of silence around suicide.

Week 4:

• Taking care of yourself: You and your well-being matter! Taking care of yourself is essential to providing youth peer support. In this video, we'll highlight the different self-care components and suggest ways to keep yourself balanced. We will also discuss the importance of setting boundaries.
• Making connections: As a youth peer supporter, you are not alone! In this video, we'll talk about connecting with people, community resources, and services to support your lifelong peer support journey.

Week 5: 

• Ending a peer support relationship: All good things must come to an end. In this video, we'll talk about how to wrap up a peer support relationship respectfully and meaningfully. We'll also provide a quick summary of the takeaway messages from the Pillars of Youth Peer Support Learning series.

If you can't attend all sessions, that's okay too. Recordings will be made available 🙂 

Presented by:

• Kamill Santafe (they/them/theirs), Centre of Excellence for Child and Youth Mental Health

Kamill is a non-conforming-Trans* youth residing in Algonquin territory- Ottawa. Kamill is a certified Peer supporter and the facilitator for YourSpace-Hamilton psychoeducational sessions (Feb-March). Throughout the years, Kamill's lived experiences and training with community-based, fine arts, and mental health youth engagement has allowed them to gain expertise in areas such as knowledge mobilization, implementation and evaluation of youth peer support and youth engagement in mental health and community-based organizations.

At the Ontario Centre of Excellence for Child and Youth Mental Health, Kamill is a Youth Advisor who supports agencies and communities across Ontario with their youth engagement efforts and initiatives.