About us
Male Survivors provides nonprofessional assistance through peer counseling and peer support. Clients in need of professional counseling are encouraged to locate professional assistance as an adjunct or precursor to Male Survivors. Male Survivors seeks to meet the needs that are unmet by traditional therapy, provide support to survivors as they heal, and end stigma and isolation. Male Survivors strives to reinstate feelings of personal worth, influence social change, and focus on strengths not blaming.
Male Survivors is not a social service agency, reporting agency, or professional counseling program. Male Survivors is not affiliated with any religion.
Male Survivors is a diverse organization and does not discriminate on the basis of age, race, gender, religious belief, sexual orientation, or disability. Male Survivors provides services to both male and female clients.
About the Staff
Male Survivors Staff are not professional therapists. Male Survivors Staff are comprised of survivors and members who have completed the program, and use peer support and peer counseling. Male Survivors staff consult with local counselors and psychologists in order to provide the best possible services.
Philosophy of Empowerment
Male Survivors uses a philosophy of empowerment. We do not view the survivor of abuse as a victim or passive participant in recovery. We use a working definition of empowerment:
Having decision-making power.
Having access to information and resources.
Having a range of options from which to make choices (not just yes/no, either/or.)
Assertiveness.
A feeling that the individual can make a difference (being hopeful).
Learning to think critically; learning the conditioning; seeing things differently; e.g.,
Learning to redefine who we are (speaking in our own voice).
Learning to redefine what we can do.
Learning to redefine our relationships.
Learning about and expressing anger.
Not feeling alone; feeling part of a group.
Understanding that people have rights.
Effecting change in one's life and one's community.
Learning skills (e.g., communication) that the individual defines as important.
Changing others' perceptions of one's competency and capacity to act.
Coming out of the closet.
Growth and change that is never ending and self-initiated.
Increasing one's positive self-image and overcoming stigma.
Special thanks to Judy Chamberlin, Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation,
930 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, USA
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