The beginning of the year always surrounds us with conversations about setting intentions and reflecting on what we’d like to change, add, keep, or leave behind. One thing that seems quite common is that people who have been thinking about trying something new often find that the new year is a great time to get started. It is a natural time of reset for many people, though any day is a good day to do something to invest in yourself.
One thing that people often want to improve is finding new ways to get more support in life. Whether you’re going through a life transition, life feels stagnant, everything is going well, or somewhere in between, joining together with others who will support, understand, validate, and cheer you on can add so much value to your life.
If this sounds great to you, joining a Women’s Support Group would be a great place to start! A Women’s Support Group typically consists of a small group of people who identify as women who meet regularly to offer each other support, encouragement, validation, and understanding around many different topics that are discussed.
A group like this provides a safe space for women just like you to be your authentic self, to share both positive and challenging things that are going on in your life, and to gain insight and support from others who may be or have gone through a similar situation.
Let’s explore three ways that you can benefit from joining a Women’s Support Group:
1. Increased Sense of Community and Social Connections
One of the main reasons that people join Women’s Support Groups is to increase social support in general or to find a community of people who may be going or have gone through similar experiences. It’s not uncommon for group members to say that they don’t have enough support from people they can trust. Or, that the friends and family that you do share with can’t provide the support that you need.
Even if you do have strong social support from others in your life, you can still greatly benefit from the sense of community, belonging, connection, and safety that a Women’s Support Group can provide you. Group members say that they truly look forward to meeting and are greatly invested in the stories and experiences of the other group members.
2. Increased Emotional Support
Another common reason why people join Women’s Support Groups is to find emotional support. People often start to look for support and help during a time of life transition when it can feel like coping with what is happening exceeds your ability and resources to do so.
A life transition may be starting a new relationship, losing a relationship, loss of a loved one or pet, starting or changing careers, moving, and having a baby. Changes often bring about new challenges. A need to adapt and having a group of women you trust to share this experience with and to rally around you in support can help you feel more confident that you can get through anything.
Women also bring up needing support around more ongoing personal or societal issues that women face such as body image, sexuality, what it’s like to be a woman in our society, expectations of perfection by themselves and/or others, women’s and mother’s mental load, and the stigma of seeking mental health treatment.
The above are common topics that come up during Women’s Support Groups. Creating a space in which these things can be discussed freely reduces feelings of social isolation, creates a sense of solidarity, and can provide group members just like you with valuable coping skills, strategies, and resources.
3. Increased Self Care
Real and sustainable self-care requires that you commit to investing in yourself consistently over time. Being a part of a Women’s Support Group is a great way to support yourself. Self-care is essential to maintaining your physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and professional well-being and can improve all aspects of your life.
Support groups meet at regularly scheduled times and many support groups are closed groups. This means that you’ll be meeting with the same people from week to week. Meeting regularly helps maintain consistency. Also, meeting with the same people each week helps to build a sense of closeness which also increases motivation to stay committed.
The benefits that you will get from joining a Women’s Support Group align well with and complement other sources of support you may be engaged in like Individual Therapy. Each type of resource has its benefits and limitations and you will reap the benefits of each of them.
If you’re a woman who’s looking for more support right now, joining a Women’s Support Group might be a great opportunity for you. Catalyss Counseling offers online Women’s Support Groups, which can be an empowering and transformative experience for women like you who are looking for personal growth and connection. If you are interested in learning more, contact us today!
How We Can Help
Interested in learning more about a Women's support group?
If you are looking for postpartum support, or if you would like to talk to someone more about how we can help you, follow these simple steps:
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Other Therapy Services Available at Catalyss Counseling:
Here at Catalyss Counseling, we want to meet all of your counseling needs in the Denver area. Our supportive therapists provide depression counseling, therapy for caregiver stress, grief and loss therapy, stress management counseling and more. We also have specialists in trauma and PTSD, women's issues, pregnancy and postpartum depression or anxiety, pregnancy loss and miscarriage, and birth trauma. For therapists, we can also provide clinical supervision! We look forward to connecting with you to help support your journey today.
Author Biography
Pansy Ayala is a licensed therapist with Catalyss Counseling and specializes in treating adults with anxiety, depression, grief and loss, and relationship issues. She uses a holistic, individualized approach to better understand who you are, what areas of your life you find problematic, and how you can reach your goals. She especially enjoys working with parents. Follow Catalyss Counseling on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.