“Kevin’s coaching style is conversational and easy going yet frank. His ultimate skill lies in subtly bringing you from where you are now, to where you want to be. His honesty and humour are an absolute breath of fresh air – my sessions with him were always the highlight of my week!” – Anne
What is a Mental Health Peer Coach?
A Mental Health Peer Coach is a person who supports others in their recovery from mental ill-health, and is someone who also pro-actively promotes person-centred approaches to recovery and wellbeing.
A professional Mental Health Peer Coach has achieved relevant academic qualifications to enable them to carry out their work in an appropriate, safe, and informed manner. Alongside of their academic qualifications, a Mental Health Peer Coach is also what is termed ‘Expert by Experience’, having had their own lived experience of mental ill-health, and of having been a client within the mental health services themselves.
Principles underpinning my work as a Mental Health Peer Coach:
I believe in everyone’s ability to live a meaningful life, regardless of whatever labels/diagnoses may have been put upon them.
I believe in the potential of the individual, their desire to create hope, and their capacity to create the change they need to meet their potential.
I believe that the world around us is in flux, and that the mental distress we experience is often our normal response to life events.
My aims as a Mental Health Peer Coach:
To honour and acknowledge every individual’s unique story and experience.
To respect, hear, and understand the individual through experiential empathy, my personal understanding of the depths of mental distress, and my belief that there is always hope.
To authentically support the individual in their endeavour to refocus and regain their motivation and zest for life.
To aid the individual in identifying and tapping into their unique strengths and abilities.
To promote simple, accessible recovery and wellbeing practises which help prevent the individual getting to crisis point – practises which also help them to be well and stay well.
Kevin McCormack 