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Home Campus Peer Support Appendix Appendix G: Self-reflective practice: tips for peer supporters

Appendix G: Self-reflective practice: tips for peer supporters

After an interaction with a student in distress, it is important to:
  • Document key points without any recording personal information (confidentiality)
  • Ensure the student’s privacy
  • Self-care (take a moment, reflect on your emotional state, assess your need to engage in wellness activities)
  • Consult (as needed or per policy within your service)
Reflect: self-reflection
  • People involved with, or exposed to, stress and trauma can experience a range of emotional responses
  • It is important to take care of your own well-being after offering support to someone else
  • Take some time to do some of the following:
    • Debrief with a fellow peer supporter
    • Reflect on the situation and remember that your role is not a counsellor
    • Look out for physical/behavioural/emotional symptoms in your own self that might indicate signs of struggling and seek external support for yourself
    • Practice self-care
Wellness and self-care
  • Meditation and mindfulness
  • Exercise/physical activity
  • Meeting social needs
  • Maintaining physical well-being
  • Positive work/life balance
  • Eating well
  • Create meaning/do things that are meaningful to you

Campus Peer Support

Guide: PDF Version