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Recovery in Relationship: The Power of Peer Support at Tillamook Family Counseling Center

Posted on July 28, 2025 by Editor

At Tillamook Family Counseling Center (TFCC), Peer Support Specialists offer a unique form of assistance that’s transforming how our community approaches healing and recovery.

The Power of Shared Experience

Unlike traditional counseling, peer support is based on shared lived experience rather than clinical expertise. Peer Support Specialists are individuals in personal recovery who use their stories to support others on their path to wellness, operating on the fundamental principle that people can and do recover, and that healing happens in relationship.

“To me, being a peer means sharing stories; connection (to community, ourselves, recovery, society),” explains Melinda Scott, a Peer Support Specialist at TFCC. “It means sharing the ways I navigated through circumstances and sharing hope and encouragement.”

“Being a peer is a beautiful experience for me,” adds Portia McGowan. “It gives me a chance to give back to my community and show first hand that recovery can change the trajectory of your life.”

Rather than seeing individuals as diagnoses or cases, peer supporters see whole people within the context of their families, roles, and communities. They use their own stories not to center themselves, but to show others that change is not only possible—it’s real, and it’s happening every day.

Josh Balmer describes what he enjoys most about his work: “The thing I most enjoy is watching someone on their journey while walking beside them. Being there for them and helping them by sharing our lived experiences in addiction and mental health treatment. Watching the light come back in their eyes.”

This “light coming back” is something multiple TFCC peer specialists mention – that moment when hope returns and someone realizes they’re not alone in their struggle. As Melinda puts it, “What I enjoy most about peer work is seeing ‘the light’ come on in someone’s eyes. The light of hope and celebration of their progress in their own goals. The recognition that things can change. Letting people know they are not alone in the struggle, no agenda just to walk with someone while they work on their goals in recovery.”

What Peer Support Is—And Isn’t

TFCC defines Peer Support Specialists as: Staff who are engaged in personal recovery, dealing with mental health and substance use challenges. They utilize lived experience to encourage and support individuals in discovering their unique recovery path. Their purpose is to advocate, educate, motivate, and mentor.

Peer Support is not therapy, case management, or clinical advice. Instead, peer supporters are grounded in lived experience, hopeful and encouraging, focused on mutual learning, and supportive of many recovery pathways. They don’t provide diagnoses, tell people what to do, or offer material resources—they support individuals in learning how to access resources, set personal goals, and make empowered choices.

Real Impact in Our Community

The difference peer support makes extends far beyond individual conversations. Portia has witnessed remarkable transformations: “I have seen people find friends and family. Enter into and sustain personally important recovery. People who thought they would never be able to work again have moved up the ladder in a long term job. People have stayed out of the hospital for record times, and felt heard.” Portia’s own story demonstrates this power. Five years ago, she was unemployable, had lost her child, couldn’t legally drive, and carried significant debt of child support. Through peer support, she not only found recovery but learned “how to be a mother, daughter, employee. The key was to find my people that understood my illness and could understand the way my brain worked and helped me rewire it,” Portia shared. Today, she helps others navigate similar challenges.

For Portia, peer support represents something profound: “Hope. The recognition between two people who have felt no way out of their situations but have given one last chance to find a new solution. When I run into people from my previous lifetime it is a hopeful reminder that things can and will change in life.”

Jennifer Barksdale, who collaborates with the local health department on TFCC’s Syringe Services program, shares her perspective: “Being a peer support is so important, offering care and assistance to my clients. I have helped people walk through problems I have had before, often turning my old tragedies into triumphs. My favorite part of my job is collaborating with our local health dept on our Syringe Services program. Showing people compassion instead of stigma means a lot.”

This approach creates ripple effects throughout Tillamook. When community members see peers who have successfully navigated recovery, it changes attitudes about mental health and addiction, making it easier for others to seek help.

A Community Resource

Peer support is available to anyone facing mental health or substance use challenges. The service is designed to meet people where they are, without judgment, and support them in discovering their own path forward. Importantly, peer support complements rather than replaces professional treatment—it’s about walking alongside someone, sharing what worked, and providing hope during difficult times. As Portia puts it, “It’s magic. It’s a dance that needs at least two people to equally put in effort to find the rhythm.”

To learn more about peer support services at TFCC or to connect with a Peer Support Specialist, contact Tillamook Family Counseling Center. Recovery is possible, and no one has to face it alone. Call Tillamook Family Counseling Center at 503-842-8201; Learn more at www.tfcc.org

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