Running Head Week Two Discussion Summary 1 Week Two Discussion Summary BSHS 471 Which personal characteristics do you consider essential for a successful career in human services Which characteristics should be considered detrimental Running Head Week Two Discussion Summary 2 As a team our findings of a self help group noted from Brittany is run by an individual member of a group that has formed in goals of sharing information regarding specific characteristics that they all share Members may be suffering the same issues in life and have support stories and inspiration by fellow members who have faced or are facing the same issues A group like this could be a multiple mothers group From Becky s perspective the members share a common problem often a common disease or addiction Their mutual goal is to help each other to deal with if possible to heal or to recover from this problem With self help groups people offer others support and set a mutual goal to help each other Zoila s opinion on a self help group is a group of individuals who provide shared support for one another who share problem addictions disease physical emotional and or mental issues This group s goal is to help one another heal and recover from the problem Individuals who are part of self help groups choose to share common concerns and interests Charletta notes a self help group is just that a self help group This type of group allows the individual to work with others that has been in the same situation and they are able to support the individuals when need be to become a better person Eunice s believes a self help group comes from the support of other individuals who have experienced or are experiencing similar difficulties is particularly important when one is in the process of managing a crisis Scileppi and Teed and Terres 2000 There are so many individuals who Running Head Week Two Discussion Summary 3 share similar situations who can talk about his or her situation to another individual and possibly help that person be able to either learn how to deal with the situation such as cancer patients drug addicts battered man woman prostitution and etc Tanya also states there are two types of self help groups those that help a member reduce a certain kind of behavior and those that help a member deal with something with help from those that have been through the same life experience An example of the first self help group would be a sex addict group If a person finds him or herself ruining his or her life because he or she cannot control his or her sexual urges then he or she may want to see out this kind of group Within this group the members may vow to be celibate in order to get his or her life back on track An example of the second self help group would be a battered woman s meeting In the meeting are women who have been through being abused and using their knowledge and being at different stages in the recovery grieving process they are able to help one another Both self help groups help a member mental overcome something Each type of group helps a specific issue and is instrumental to helping each member over come whatever that issue is Brittany s opinion on a mutual group could be Alcoholics Anonymous There is support from a professional as well as members with the same issues These groups really help in mental health by providing support to allow Running Head Week Two Discussion Summary 4 people to not feel so out of place and have someone who they can relate to For example in depression it is hard to overcome those feelings of the down times Having another person who can relate to the problem and give advice on how to overcome and work through this type of issue is more effective than an individual who has no idea what it feels like from Becky notes a mutual help group is a group of people who meet on a regular base and exchange information in order to give and receive a psychological support that is needed An example of this type of group would be alcohol anonymous places where people go for support Both groups offer those in need help in areas that are needed and share common problems Each group is designed to help mentally and physically with specific issues and offering the tools needed to overcome his or her issue Zoila shares her thoughts that mutual help groups are groups of nonprofessionals who involve members that share same problems and willingly support for each other in recovery from their problem By taking such step individuals gain their health and recovery back into their lives Both self help groups and mutual help groups play an important role in mental health services as the effect on individuals can be very distinct based on their situation Patients must always take their doctors recommendation on whether their situation allows them to participate in such groups Running Head Week Two Discussion Summary 5 Charletta also stated a mutual help group is a group where common issues are amongst the members of the group The members of the group have experienced several familiar scenarios and they teach and learn from their counterparts In the delivery of mental health services these groups give mental support to the individuals in the group These groups allow the individual to hear and experience their situations from others allowing them to open up to one another to work on the issues at hand While Eunice feels a mutual help group comes from individuals who share common experience and have regular meetings to share his or her personal experience s and in return seek psychological support The roles these two groups play in the delivery of mental health services are the psychological support of others who have experience what one another has had experience and can share his or her personal story and be able to learn from each other while seeking the psychological help each individual need Reference Running Head Week Two Discussion Summary 6 Scileppi J A Teed E L Torres R D 2000 Community psychology A common sense approach to mental health Upper Saddle River NJ Pearson Prentice Hall