Certified Peer Supporters ready to help!
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Taamer R.
State Certified Peer Supporter
My name is Taamer, and I am an Organizationally Trained and State of California Certified Peer Support Specialist. I have over five years of experience in peer support, both as a participant and facilitator. My journey began through my own lived experiences with life’s challenges, where I discovered the value of connecting with others who understand what it means to struggle, heal, and grow. Today, I volunteer my time facilitating peer support groups for individuals experiencing depression, anxiety, OCD, grief, trauma, relationship difficulties, life transitions, and other mental health challenges. My approach is compassionate, nonjudgmental, and recovery-oriented. I strive to create a welcoming environment where people feel heard, respected, and supported without pressure to be fixed or judged. I believe meaningful growth and healing come through connection, shared experiences, mutual understanding, and empowering individuals to discover their own strengths and resilience.
Justin S.
State Certified Peer Supporter
I am a 43-year-old Certified Peer Specialist (CPS) with over four years of hands-on experience, currently residing in the Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania. I endeavor to facilitate creation of safe spaces, open-minded discussions, along with pursuing breaking down of barriers and stigmas surrounding mental health. For the last year and a half, I have taken on a supervisory role, mentoring other CPS professionals. Some additional credentials I currently hold: Certified Trauma Competent Professional (Lakeside), CPS in Crisis Services (PaPSC), Forensic Peer (PMHCA), Certified Mental Health First Aider, and Certified CIT Coordinator.
Zoe G.
Certified Peer Supporter
I’m Zoe (they/them). In 2015, I began my recovery. A year later, I started making art. After nearly twenty years of marriage and raising three kids, I came out later in life and found myself starting over around fifty. I had spent years thinking about what my family needed. It took time to learn how to ask, “What do I want for myself?” I’m a California Medi-Cal Certified Peer Support Specialist and a Certified Professional Recovery Life Coach. At 26, I stopped working outside the home and spent the next 20 years as a full-time stay-at-home mom to my three kids. At 50, after my marriage ended, I found myself rebuilding my life. I knew how to show up for my family. Figuring out what I wanted for myself took some practice. My recovery from pain medication began in 2015. Part of my story is learning to speak up for myself when I was in pain. My doctor told me I was overweight and depressed and that if I lost weight, my body would stop hurting. I was still in pain, and I wanted to understand why. I left the pain clinic, became my own medical advocate, and started looking for answers. Eventually, a skin punch biopsy led to my diagnosis of small fiber neuropathy (SFN). I remember what it felt like to keep asking for help after I’d already been dismissed. I also live with fibromyalgia and ADHD. I’ve been diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (BPD), bipolar II disorder, and complex PTSD (CPTSD), and I have lived experience with anxiety and depression. Some days, what I most want someone to understand is how much effort an ordinary day can take. I’m queer and nonbinary. I came out later in life, and two of my three kids are also part of the LGBTQ+ community. I have no contact with my mother, father, or sister, and that wasn’t my choice. I know there can be grief in missing family members who are still alive. My Ventureño-Barbareño Chumash Native roots are part of who I am. I’m also an artist, a writer, and a drag performer. I enjoy improv and sing in my local choir. You’re welcome to talk with me about recovery on your own terms, chronic pain, mental health, parenting, coming out, or starting over. Maybe you want to practice what to say at your next doctor’s appointment. Maybe you miss someone in your family and want a place to say that out loud. We can start with whatever brought you here.
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Miranda G.
Certified Peer Supporter
With over 13 years of experience in peer support and mental health, I offer 1:1 support rooted in both professional practice and lived experience. I understand what it’s like to feel stuck, overwhelmed, or unsure of where to start. My role isn’t to fix you, it’s to walk beside you as you reconnect with your strengths, your voice, and your sense of hope. I believe the most meaningful healing happens in spaces where you feel truly seen and accepted. In our work together, you’ll be met with compassion, honesty, and zero judgment. Whether you’re struggling with mental health, life transitions, parenting, postpartum changes, or simply trying to feel like yourself again, we’ll move at a pace that feels safe and right for you. Outside of sessions, I find grounding in nature through kayaking, fishing, and mindful photography, practices that remind me how powerful it can be to slow down and reconnect with the present moment. These values often weave naturally into my peer support approach, helping others find calm, clarity, and balance in everyday life. Becoming a mother has deepened my understanding of resilience, exhaustion, love, and self-compassion. It has reinforced my belief that asking for support is not a weakness, it’s an act of courage. If you’re ready to reach out, even if you’re unsure of what you need, I’m here to listen. -Miranda
James G.
Certified Peer Supporter
I am a husband, father, and son who understands that life can feel overwhelming when you're trying to carry everything on your own. Through my own experiences, I've learned that having someone who truly listens, understands, and walks beside you can make all the difference. That's why I'm here—to provide the support, encouragement, and understanding that everyone deserves. As a Certified Peer Specialist and Certified Parent Peer Specialist, I bring both professional training and lived experience to the people I support. My personal journey has included experiences with depression, anxiety, medical trauma, and early childhood trauma. Along the way, my family and I have navigated the joys and challenges of raising two biological children, adopting a son with special needs, fostering a daughter with special needs, supporting a loved one living with Complex Trauma, and caring for my mother as she lives with Alzheimer's disease. These experiences have taught me resilience, strengthened my compassion, and reinforced my belief that no one should have to face life's challenges alone. My background in healthcare has also given me additional insight into supporting individuals and families with empathy, respect, and understanding. I believe every person's story is unique, and that healing and growth happen through connection, hope, and genuine support. Whether you're navigating mental health challenges, parenting, caregiving, trauma, or life's unexpected obstacles, you don't have to do it alone. My role isn't to tell you what to do—it's to meet you where you are, help you recognize your strengths, and walk alongside you as you move toward your goals. Recovery isn't about having all the answers—it's about having someone who believes in you while you discover your own. It would be an honor to walk alongside you on that journey.
Angel F.
Certified Peer Supporter
Hello all. My name is Angel. I am absolutely grateful to be in recovery and able to aid others along their journey. I am a mother of two, and work diligently to provide my children a childhood free from a suffering mother. In my humble opinion substance use disorder and mental health conditions are best served with a mind, body and spirit approach. I believe that ensuring that all social and emotional needs should be met in order to garner the best outcomes. I not only focus on what brought you here, but what can be done to better your circumstances as a whole, housing, food insecurity, employment, socialization etc. I am a Certified Peer Support, as well have a degree in Human Services, while completing my Psychology and Social Work degree with a concentration in Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder. As an individual who suffered and is in recovery for cooccurring substance uses and mental health I strive to meet each person where they are and grow with them.
Jessica H.
Certified Peer Supporter
Jess Hartwell is a Certified Peer Support Specialist who works with chronically ill individuals who are done waiting to be healthier to start making room for joy, connection and possibility. With a deep personal understanding of what it feels like to spend your days waiting for your body to feel like it did before, Jess offers compassionate support for those who are willing to dedicate some time each week to trying something new. Her approach is client-centered, creating a space where clients can feel seen and understood as they explore a more holistic way of living. Rather than encouraging them to do more, Jess walks alongside her clients as they reconnect with their bodies, explore their unique needs and limitations, and discover ways of living that honor their capacity. Rooted in the belief that being chronically ill doesn't have to mean putting your life on hold, her work is about helping people build a life where they care for themselves without guilt while making room for the people and experiences that matter most to them. Because you don't have to be well to live well.
Shawna E.
Certified Peer Supporter
Hello, I have moved to a different platform for my work. Please contact me 1:1 if you would like support or further information.
Heather K.
State Certified Peer Supporter
If you’re reading this while feeling like anxiety, panic, OCD, or agoraphobia has taken over your life, I want you to know that I understand what it’s like to have your world become incredibly small. My story with mental health started long before I ever had words for what I was experiencing. I’ve lived with OCD since I was a child, and anxiety and panic attacks became part of my life in my 20s. I’m now in my 40s, which means I’ve spent more than two decades learning what it’s like to live with a brain that can make ordinary situations feel anything but ordinary. At my worst, panic and agoraphobia completely changed my life. There was a period when I didn't leave my house for an entire year. During an especially difficult time, I barely left my closet for almost six weeks. It had become the place where I felt safest when the rest of the world—and sometimes even the rest of my own home—felt overwhelming. I know what it's like to be afraid of driving because you're convinced you might panic or pass out. I know what it's like to stand in a store or restaurant secretly calculating how quickly you could get outside. I've feared traffic lights, standing in line, stairs, heat, crowded places, being too far from home, and situations where I felt like I couldn't easily escape. And I know what it's like to look around at the life you're living and wonder, “How did my world get this small?” For a long time, I thought recovery meant figuring out how to never feel anxious again. I searched for ways to stop the sensations, prevent panic attacks, and make myself feel safe before I did anything uncomfortable. Eventually, I began learning something very different: recovery wasn't about waiting until I wasn't afraid. It was about learning that I could be afraid and still move forward. I've now been in recovery for almost three years. My life today looks very different from the one I was living when leaving my house felt impossible. That doesn't mean I've become a person who never experiences anxiety. It means anxiety no longer gets to make all of my decisions for me. That's also why peer support means so much to me. I'm not here to diagnose you, provide therapy, or pretend that what worked for me will automatically work for everyone. I'm here as someone with lived experience who understands how isolating these conditions can feel—and how powerful it can be to finally talk to someone who doesn't need you to explain why something as ordinary as standing in line, driving down the road, or sitting in a restaurant can feel monumental. In our sessions, we can talk openly about what you're experiencing, the fears and patterns that may be keeping your world small, the things you're working toward, and the small victories that other people may not understand are actually huge victories. I'll share the perspectives, practical tools, and lessons that helped me during my own recovery while supporting you as you figure out what moving forward looks like for you. Most importantly, I want this to be a space where you don't have to pretend you're okay. I've been the person who couldn't leave the house. I've been the person sitting somewhere desperately wishing I could escape. I've been the person wondering whether life would ever feel normal again. And now I get to be the person who can say: Your world can get bigger again
Vince C.
Certified Peer Supporter
Vince is the Founder and President of Support Groups Central, Inc., the provider of HeyPeers. He is a recognized behavioral health technology pioneer and expert in the video-based peer support space. Dr. Caimano is an organizational psychologist and has had the opportunity to coach and advise senior executives and their teams in a variety of industries. His real passion has become to connect people with others who have similar life challenges so they can encourage and support each other. Vince is a sought after speaker on anxiety, depression, sleep, exercise and how to stay the course and enjoy life. Please find a session to meet with him and others and to take a helpful step toward wellness.
J. Fin H.
Certified Peer Supporter
Fin Hirschoff holds a CPSRP certification from the state of CT. He has advanced training in Intentional Peer Support (IPS), and facilitating Alternatives to Suicide groups. He first worked in a peer support role in 2001, when he was a peer counselor for fellow college students. He got his peer support certification in early 2025. He is trained in Intentional Peer Support, active listening, and supporting voice hearers. He has lived experience with anxiety, depression, hypomania, mania, psychosis, trauma (chronic and acute), and substance use, and he is part of the LGBTQ+ community. He has experienced both great harm and benefits from psychiatric treatments, and is a psychiatric survivor. When he's not working as a CPSRP, he is an educator, farmer, and enjoys cooking, messing with computers, music, and art.
Michael C.
Certified Peer Supporter
Michael is a National Certified Peer Recovery Support Specialist (NCPRSS) through the National Certification Commission for Addiction Professionals, a Certified Peer Support Specialist (CPSS), and an Alcohol and Drug Counselor in Process (ADC-IP) through Addiction Professionals of South Carolina (APSC) and has a Bachelor’s in Human Services/Behavioral Health Michael is also an Addiction Recovery Education Consultant with a vast knowledge of addiction treatment, peer-based recovery services, and harm reduction strategies. Michael utilizes evidence-based practices to help individuals and families affected by substance use disorder (SUD), as well as people who use drugs (PWUDs). Michael has experience working in multiple settings, such as traditional SUD outpatient treatment, office-based opioid treatment, overdose follow-ups with community paramedics, just-involved populations, inpatient and outpatient care within a healthcare system, research projects involving peer recovery services, harm reduction services, managing a Recovery Community Organization(RCO), training CPSS during the state certification process, and ongoing continuing education. Michael is passionate about advocating for those who have been marginalized due to the social stigma of drug use and addiction, and those suffering the harmful effects of the War on Drugs. He is a strong believer in strength-based, person-centered, and trauma-informed approaches to addressing public health, SUD, and mental health.