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Support Group Rules

Support groups are a place to share your feelings and receive empathy from others who have been in a situation similar to yourself. There are medical, bereavement, weight loss and mental health support groups and a score of others to help people through unfortunate circumstances in life. Though rules of support groups can be specific to the particular purpose of that group, there are rules that many of them share.

  1. The Confidentiality Rule

    • In many support groups the first rule is that all information shared at the group remain confidential. This means that should you have contact with someone outside of the group, you do not share what other group members have told you, nor do you divulge any names, residences or other particulars of any group member outside of the group. This rule is number one because it helps to ensure a feeling of security amongst group members, who tend to share private information regarding their emotions and experiences.

    Rule of Acceptance

    • For most support groups, it's important that members choose to accept one another and try to refrain from judgment, as this may deter people from joining and staying in the group. Rules that pertain to acceptance include giving everyone an opportunity to share and recognizing the right to speak and to remain silent. Members are expected to refrain from speaking about someone at group who is not present.

    Rule of Advice

    • Some groups are run by mental health professionals in which case the administrator of group sessions is expected to give advice and guidance. However, groups that are run by non-professionals (sometimes called lay groups) ask their members to avoid giving advice, as advice can, even unintentionally, be perceived as condescending.

    Rule of Promptness and Exclusivity

    • Another common, and strictly adhered to, rule in support groups is to start and end the meeting promptly. Some support groups do not allow friends or family members to attend meetings. For example, a group for breast cancer survivors is only for women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. The idea is to place yourself in an environment with others who have shared similar experiences to garner a sense of community and eliminate the feeling that difficult situations have to be endured alone.

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