What's the link: An exploration of recovery and social support for individuals living with a mental illness.

Recovery from mental illness is a personal journey of transformation and has been found to be a deeply social process ...The intent of this research was to explore the relationship between an individual's recovery journey and social support for people living with a serious and persistent mental illness. Through the use of the Recovery Assessment Scale ...and Medical Outcomes Study: Social Support Survey Instrument ..., 35 participants provided quantitative data (phase one). From the quantitative data, a qualitative interview guide was fine-tuned, which was used for 10 one-on-one interviews (phase two). Demographic information was also gathered on participants from both phases. The qualitative data was analyzed using a thematic analysis, and the following five themes emerged: Work/volunteer opportunities Mental Health Services Peers Connectedness and Stigma. Through conducting this research, it is believed that a better understanding of the connection and relationship between the recovery process and social support was achieved which could begin to inform policy, practice, and future research in community mental health. As well, the beginnings of a definition of social support, from the perspectives of individuals living with a serious and persistent mental illness, was developed and may be helpful to address the present gap in the literature. --P. ii.