Article contents
Stigma and recovery in the narratives of peer support workers in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 02 January 2018
Abstract
Stigma attaching to mental illness has been considered a major challenge to public policies, to the provision of care and to the well-being of people who live with the experience of mental illness worldwide. Here we discuss narratives from peer support workers which we obtained during the assessment of a new psychosocial intervention programme in Rio de Janeiro. We used a range of focus groups, in-depth interviews and clinical supervision notes to derive these narratives, which covered topics such as the peer support workers' perceptions of family and social views, their sense of self and the experience of being stigmatised. We conclude that stigma appears to be a barrier to recovery. Peer support work for people with severe mental illness is a strategy that may help them to overcome stigma and discrimination. Fostering mutuality and hope in the context of peer support helps affected individuals to make sense of their being in the world and can facilitate their recovery.
- Type
- Thematic papers: Stigma in Latin America
- Information
- Creative Commons
- This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
- Copyright
- Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists 2015
References
- 5
- Cited by
eLetters
No eLetters have been published for this article.