Where: Monroe Park, on the corner of Main and Laurel Streets (We gauge how people feel about remaining in the park (in case it's cold, raining, etc) and go to a quiet part of the VCU Commons if people like that idea better. All depends on how people that attend are feeling.)

Why: Regular gatherings specifically for emotional support can be a great and empowering alternative to the shackles of professional and mainstream support groups.

Mutual aid and support groups are a way to bring down the walls that isolate us. No one in the group is above anyone else: mutual aid means we listen to and support each other as a community of equals, without paid professionals or staff to define who we are.

Each of us is an expert on our own experience, and each of us is the center for our decisions--and we are NOT ALONE.

When we gather together with people who've been through what we've been through, people who share some of the mysteries and suffering that get labeled 'mental illness,' we discover new maps through crisis, learn new tools to stay healthy, and weave communities of solidarity. Our wild emotional selves are seeking a way to find others. Breaking through the walls and making a connection can mean all the difference in the world.

Peer support groups are sober events, so no drugs or alcohol, please.

**This will be a safe listening space for anyone who attends, no matter their backgrounds or their current struggles. We merely ask that people are respectful of others while also maintaining confidentiality (level of confidentiality will be determined by those who attend).**