Self-Help Group: Top 3 Best Self-Help Communities For Men

Are you looking for a self-help group? Are you interested in self-development? Do you know of family members who can benefit from a self-help group? Are you looking for information on self-help groups? Are you interested in self-help? If your answer is yes to any of these questions, you have come to the right place.

Hi. My name is Sean Galla. I am a facilitator of support groups and support forums, including self-improvement groups, with more than 10 years of experience. In my line of work, I have seen firsthand how important being part of a support group is to anyone, especially men.

Self-help groups are a fantastic place for anyone to get the mutual support, empowerment, and push they need to become better people and adapt habits and mechanisms that can help them advance in their career, personal life, and even financial life.

This article will find all the information you need about self-help groups and why they come highly recommended for anyone interested in personal growth.

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Written by

Sean Galla

An experienced facilitator, community builder and Peer Support Specialist, Sean has been running men's groups for 10+ years. Read Sean's Full Author Bio.

What is Self-Help?

Self-help can be defined as little things that are done every day meant to help a man improve or change a few aspects of their professional or personal life. It is mindfulness of who you are and who you wish to become, and learning about self-care and how to take charge of your own life.

Self-help is mostly offered through self-help books. This is because self-help books have the potential of transforming anyone’s life if they put the lessons they learn in these books into practice. Self Help books readers have testified how reading has helped transform some aspects of their lives.  

self help group therapy

What is a Self-Help Group?

Also referred to as self-improvement groups, a self-help group is any support group that offers emotional support and practical advice about a challenge, experience, or concern common amongst all members.

In this group, members share a common goal, which is mostly improving their wellbeing and who they are. The group’s mutual goal is to help each member reach their goals and become better versions of themselves.

Why are Self-Help Groups Important?

In a traditional societal setup, friends and family can offer social support to one another. However, it is not always possible for family or friends to truly understand your issues if they have never walked in your shoes. This is why being part of a self-help group is important. It is only in a self-help group that you get to meet other people with the same drive to succeed. This gives you the perfect platform to learn and grow as you try to overcome the issue you face.

For human beings, continuous personal development is an important aspect of any personal, professional, or social life. Even though the self-help industry has made a lot of money from offering professional guidance and help to get better, the failure rates are still alarmingly high. According to research, at least 96% of people who set self-improvement goals end up failing. 

According to another survey, New Year’s resolutions are 86% more likely to be abandoned before February. This failure can be attributed to the lack of commitment and failure to focus on improving strengths.

It has been found that the best way to set a goal and stick to it is by having an accountability partner, and self-help groups offer exactly that.

When you set a goal and verbally share it in a group, you are more likely to work on this goal and reach it. Whether you are dealing with mental health issues you want to overcome, need a mastermind group for career development, or are looking for alcoholic anonymous support to quit, being part of a peer-led support group improves your chances of meeting your goal and sticking to it.

The self-help group members are there to push you and ensure you attain your goal, no matter how unattainable it may seem at first.

Being part of a self-improvement group gives you access to other people going through the same life issues. This helps to ease the stress and makes it easier to avoid self-isolation, common with people who feel misunderstood or stuck. Taking part in the group activities gives the self-help group members a higher level of understanding of their issues, which improves their self-esteem.

How a Self-Help Group Works

As explained earlier, the best self-help or self-improvement group is one that offers emotional support while giving practical help to people dealing with various issues, from mental health to career stagnations and addiction to procrastination.

Self-help groups are made up of peers who share the same emotional or physical issues. Since most of these groups are informal, they are often said to be an added benefit to professional help, especially if it is related to an illness. The goal is these groups is to assist each other and offer coping skills.

For a self-improvement group to be a success, there must be a level of trust and openness amongst the members. Sharing is part of the process when you are part of a self-improvement group. Each member is free to share with the group and explain their challenge or progress in their self-improvement journey. Through self-disclosure, members are free to share their stories, issues, feelings, and stresses.

The members also determine the best activities and advice likely to work for their needs. This can include reading self-help books or listening to self-help podcasts. The group facilitates honest and open communications in a non-judgmental environment for the benefit of each member. These are the features that make self-help groups beneficial to the participants.

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self help group activities

Types of Self-Help Groups

Self-help groups range from informal meetings and regular groups comprising small groups of three or more members interested in mutual help.

Twelve-steps programs

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), cocaine anonymous, gamblers anonymous, and narcotics anonymous are the most common 12-step programs or mutual aid groups for substance abuse. These types of self-help groups help members overcome addiction, alcoholism, and other addictive behaviors through a 12-step recovery program and advocacy.

In a twelve-step group, members are encouraged to turn their lives to a superior power like spiritual guides or God. This relinquishes control to this higher power as an essential part of the recovery process. The participants are encouraged to remain anonymous.

Traditional groups

These types of self-help groups meet in public places or health care centers. They address different issues faced by the members and offer a group-based solution. this includes mental illnesses like bipolar, substance use disorders, access to health services, and other issues standing in the way of them becoming better people. Such a meeting can occur once a week, bi-weekly, or once a month, depending on the group’s mandate.

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Online groups

Over the years, there has been an increase in the number of online-based peer support self-help groups. These online self-help programs represent a growing trend in modern-day human services help where members share in groups meetings held in chat rooms, forums, or closed social networks. The main benefit of online self-help groups is that online platforms are available around the clock, which is impossible with in-person group meetings.

Most of the time, online support groups are led by a moderator who is not necessarily health professionals, who guide the conversation and offers helpful resources to the members for smart recovery. 

Online self-improvement groups have become especially popular during this Covid season, in line with the social distancing rules. Whether you live in the heart of New York or somewhere in Europe, you can find an online self-help group through online referrals at the click of a button. Mnesgroup.com is one of the most popular online-based self-improvement groups today.

self help groups for mental health

Top-Rated Self-Help Groups Today

The Family Institute 

The Family Institute holds a self-improvement group for men in different age groups. This self-help group aims to encourage the members to reflect inwards and lead them on a journey to self-discovery. The group uses a here-and-now approach that allows the group members to offer support to one another to empower them in their professional, relational, and personal lives.

L3 Leadership 

L3 Leadership is centered on building a community of leaders by encouraging them to grow to their full potential. As a member of L3, you are encouraged and equipped to follow your dreams, and are guides on how to become a better leader in your family, community, city, and country. All L3 mastermind group members are coached, encouraged, and held accountable as part of the growth process to meet your goals.

MensGroup

Lack of a support system is one of the major causes of mental health issues amongst men. Men’s Group is an online men’s self-improvement group that offers group support, help, and guidance to men interested in becoming better versions of themselves.

It is a supportive network of men ready and willing to help others like them through shared life experiences. MensGroup uses different group activities for service delivery. The mensgroup.com self-help session is rich in relevant information to help you lead a better life. It is more than just a self-help group. It will equip you with the resources you need to become a better man and lead a better, more fulfilling life.

As an online support group for men, the group meets virtually over video or chat, making it perfect for busy men who prefer not to attend physical meetings.

Conclusion

There are numerous self-help groups in different parts of America. If you are looking for a self-help support group available at all times, MensGroup is one of the best options today. As an online-based self-help group, you can be sure that there is an active meeting or forum at all times.

The possibilities of success once you join a self-improvement group are tremendous. It is only through a self-help group that you can truly enjoy a better, happier life.

*Sources:
1. When are self-help programs “helpful”?
2. Guided self-help in primary care mental health: meta-synthesis of qualitative studies of patient experience
3. Involvement in mental health self-help groups and recovery
4. Benefits of Self-Help
5. A REVIEW OF RESEARCH ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SELF-HELP MUTUAL AID GROUPS