Have we been forgotten about?

@Cuddlebear

Thank you so much for your kind words. I really value that, and it's a privilege to be here with you all.

It makes me so sad that we're all worried about getting in trouble for speaking up, but sharing how these changes are affecting us is an important way to ensure the community stays true to its purpose.

I'm standing right here with you all, hoping that management takes these concerns to heart and we see positive action!

Please be kind to yourself today, and make sure to do something nice for yourself (I'm having a bowl of fresh popcorn as a treat haha)

@MatchaToad You are so welcome and I really mean it from my heart.

Yes I’m scared we will get in trouble. I just think that it’s important we can share our lived experience about the forums and how they affecting us all. We’ve all been honest and respectful too.

Im glad you’re having some popcorn … I’m crying I’m just sad about how the forums are. I feel supported knowing others feel the same way and having you here too.

Hi @MatchaToad

@thanks for your reply. And I’m really sorry that you have committed your time and effort to volunteer here and you have just been left hanging like that. It’s not fair. I’m a strong believer that if your organization has volunteers of any time, you MUST look after them no matter what. Because it’s often the volunteers that holds everything together.

how are things for community guides? Are you being supported?

im genuinely scares that that’s exactly what is going to happen here @MatchaToad that it will just disappear one day. No communication nothing. And that could have devastating impacts on the community here.

what programs are actually running in the background? Recovery group? Guided program? That’s where everyone has gone. That’s what happened to the webchat and phone line. All the counselors went to the guided program, especially when the programs were opened up to aus wide


it’s really sad. It’s a real shame. Cause tyme went to that big conference in America last year and she shared about how amazing the forums are, like nothing like it anywhere else in the world. Then there was that day last year maybe when they had all the Polly’s log on to see how it all worked and how good it was…. And now?

I was so grateful when I found this place. It helped me so much. But if I had an alternative way to communicate with a couple of people I’d just leave.

it’s sad 😢

@Cuddlebear

Sending you a virtual hug! Please don't apologise for those tears; they come from a place of deep value for this community.

I am so glad that we can all be here for each other in this. Even though the forums are feeling so different right now, this connection we're all having, this honesty and mutual respect, is the best part of what this place is.

I genuinely feel the same way. As a Community Guide,

I haven't been given any more information than you all have.

I don't really know why things have shifted or why the communication has gone quiet, and it's just as confusing for me to navigate as a volunteer.

I have noticed the same gap in support and the absence of peer workers that you're describing.

how are things for community guides?

Are you being supported? ---- as a community guide @Bow I feel the same as what @MatchaToad has said

@Bow

Thank you so much for looking out for me. It really means a lot. I agree that volunteers are the heart of spaces like this, and while it's been a bit of a quiet and confusing time behind the scenes, having these honest conversations with you all is what keeps me going.

It's so sad to look back on those high points you mentioned, from the conference and the Pollys, and feel the contrast with how things are right now. You've seen this place at its best. I can really see why the current silence feels so loud.

I will be honest, as a Peer Guide, that I haven't really received any support from higher up since volunteering on here last year. There is no direct communication platform (besides a seperate forum on here for Peer Guides where nothing happens) for us volunteers to check in with the team, which is such a massive change from my previous volunteering work. On that platform, moderators and volunteers were constantly in touch. If I flagged a difficult post or needed a check-in after a tough interaction, they were right there. Here, that just doesn't exist at the moment; it's total silence.

I don't have the answers about the guided programs or where resources are being shifted, but I do share your concern about the impact that this has had on everyone. It's really hard to stay when you feel like the magic and support have faded, and I hear how much it hurts to even think about leaving.

Even while the future is uncertain, I am so glad that we're all talking here today. This might not be a big conference, but this right here is still the heart of the forum.

---

@MatchaToad wrote:

as a Peer Guide,

---

Have you been de-moted? Your thing lists you as Senior Contributor, not staff

I'm very thankful for this groundswell of support for continuing the peer-supported forums model, and not leaving it behind in a move to timebound programs that might be more aligned to short-term funding.

I've just given feedback via the online form.

It would be nice if @RachSANECEO could read this thread and respond.

I’m the same @Bow

If I could keep in contact with certain people through other options, I wouldn’t be here anymore.

this used to be the most interactive, supportive website I have come across. To me, it feels that a lot of that has just vanished due to the “changes”. “Changes” that have left me feeling like a mushroom.

I find comfort knowing I’m not the only person feeling the way I am. I feel sorry for everyone on the forums who need the support from PSWs. Also feel sorry for new people seeking help, guidance and support. It’s ok to say “peer group support” where those on the forums are already struggling. We can’t give to others when our own cups are nearly empty.

I tagged our ceo in a similar chat at one stage, I don’t know why I bothered. There has been zero info come down from “the powers that be” to those of us who on directly impacted by decisions made.

do I feel I belong and am wanted on the forums? Yes, only due to the support from other forum members and contributors. (Not intending to take anything away from PSWs that on the forums when they can be. Feels like their ability to be on the forums when rostered on is almost zero).

I have concerns that, without any notification, that the forums will cease to exist. That they will vanish completely leaving a lot of people Australia wide without any type of support

Its becoming scary

@Shaz51 @MatchaToad @Cuddlebear @DogMan79 @Captain24

@DogMan79

It's only ever shown me as a senior contributor after a while of starting off on here. I don't know why it doesn't show me as a Peer Guide, maybe they just couldn't be bothered to upgrade it?