Every day supporter
The Idea:
Ask around 7 people if they would be up for having a day of the week each where they intentionally contact you to see how you are and offer support on that day. This person can also be someone you can reach out to if you need anything on that day. This format can help to create a sense of community around you and that someone will be there every day. It can help to create and maintain close connections with people if you are finding it hard to stay in contact. And it can create a level of safety if someone is needing support but is not reaching out when they need help for whatever reason. Prior agreements can make it much easier to reach out for support. Step one: Choose seven or so people that you would like to ask if they would be up for being a supporter. You could have a think about back up people if someone doesn't have capacity to do this. Step two: Send them a message explaining the system and asking if they would like to join, here is an example: ----------------------------------------------------------- Hey there, below is a slightly vulnerable request.... ❤ I'm working on building support systems and broadening out as I have noticed whilst I have been struggling that it can be very very difficult to reach out for support (esp when I most need it) and generally hard to stay in contact with people I love. I want to ask if you would be up for having a day of the week where you intentionally contact me to see how I am, this could just be via a little text, voice message or you could call me, and the conditions are that I must respond to you on that day a bit about how I am, even if it's a small response. It might be helpful to set a reminder on your phone for that day. I also would like it if on that day you are someone I can reach out to, just knowing we have an agreement that I can text in the morning if I'm feeling a bit sad, or organise a call with you (or something like that) is nice for me and I think will make it easier for me to reach out too. I think probably I would like to try this out for a month, to see how it works. It may be that I'm still In a place where I need quite a lot of support then and it might not be, I don't know! But we can revisit it and check how it's going for everyone. If you're up for this then let me know a few days of the week that could work better for you, and if you're not (that's very ok too) then let me know so I can ask someone else. 🌿✨🌿✨🌿✨🌿✨🌿 ----------------------------------------------------------- Step three: Now that the system is set up it should mostly come to you in the form of a daily text or call or message from someone. Do also reach out, you could send a text first thing when you wake up or organise a call or to see that person. Step four: Revisit the system after an agreed amount of time, and ask if people are still willing to be involved if you still need every day support. It's possible that some people might step out due to capacity etc, this is a chance to bring in fresh support from someone else, and build more connections. |
Adaptation ideas
- Have someone supporting every other day. A message sent by a friend on behalf of me:
|