Keeping each other safe

Some members arrive in pain, or in danger, to themselves or from others. This policy says what protection we offer, who provides it, and where it stops.

Who it covers

Everyone here: members, peer volunteers, group facilitators, moderators, and staff.

Our limits, stated first

We are a community and a set of resources. We are not an emergency service, a crisis line, a clinic, or a substitute for medical or psychiatric care. When someone needs more than peers can give, our job is to help them reach the right help fast, not to pretend we are it.

When someone is in crisis

• If you need immediate help, support is always one click away, with crisis lines and techniques to steady yourself, right when you need them.
• If a member says something that suggests they may seriously harm themselves or someone else, the expected response from everyone is the same: stay kind, do not try to be their therapist, and point them to "Get help now" and to a moderator.
• Moderators may reach out directly, surface crisis resources, and, in the narrow case of a real and immediate risk of serious harm, contact emergency services. We share only the minimum needed. This is the one place where safety can override privacy, and it is deliberately narrow.

Protection from other people

• Experiencers are targeted by predatory "researchers," grifters, stalkers, and people selling fake cures. Protecting members from that harm is a core purpose of this policy.
• Soliciting members for paid services, research, or "treatment" outside our published processes is prohibited and is grounds for removal.
• We keep a confidential channel to report exploitation, harassment, doxxing, or stalking.
• We provide digital-security and anti-doxxing guidance and will help a targeted member think through their options.

Peer volunteers and facilitators

• They are screened before they are given a role.
• They work within scope: presence and shared experience, not diagnosis or treatment, and they refer or escalate when something is beyond peer support.
• They keep what members share confidential, within the limits of this policy.
• They do not form exploitative or romantic relationships with members they support, do not solicit members for paid services, and do not give medical advice.
• They have a named person to bring concerns to, and a regular check-in. At launch this supervision is small and personal, and it grows with the program.

Reporting and disputes

Anyone can report a safety concern through a clear, non-punitive flow. Reports about moderation or a volunteer go up a published escalation path. Once the community is large enough, an ombudsperson handles disputes; until then a named founding moderator does, and we say so.

The law

Where we are legally required to report certain risks, we will. These obligations exist and vary by jurisdiction, and we will be honest with members about that.

Review

We review this policy regularly and after any serious incident, and we note the review date here.