Disability peer support: making room beyond the crisis
Sam Connor: When We’re No Longer Under Fire
By Sam Connor · Originally published 23 May 2017
Original article
Our Disability Support Organisation project has been extended for a year. That is excellent news.
Not many people know about the project. A few years ago, the National Disability Insurance Agency funded a peer support project. Over 50 organisations nationally were successful in receiving funding for supporting up to 20 peer support organisations who would help disabled people and families to learn more about and navigate the NDIS. The project is led by Julia Farr in SA, and there are many people who have benefited from the individual projects.
We keep banging on about the importance of peer support and advocacy, but I do not think non-disabled people and non-family members who work in disability agencies have any idea how important it is. It’s not a visible issue, because we have not realised the full potential for peer support yet.
There’s a reason for this.
Picture that scene from the Gallipoli movie. You know, the one with Mel Gibson in it, where the 8th Battalion arrive at Anzac Cove under a hail of gunfire.
That’s what it has been like in the disability support system. That initial period of confusion, trying to scramble to safety. We’ve been figuratively clawing our way through mud and over the bodies of our comrades in order to get to the top of the next rise, without knowing what’s ahead, without any time to look sideways.
Nobody knows what is over the top of that hill and after many battles, few have hope. We’ve barely had time to count our fallen in our desperate race for survival.
That is what trauma looks like. The failed funding applications, the suicides and deaths of our friends, the constant barrage of crises, one after the other. All this in the middle of living with lack of support, sleepless nights, institutional abuse, two showers a week.
This is what the people working in the system need to understand. That all of a sudden, a general arrives at the top of the rise, holds up his hand and says, ‘It’ll be okay, troops. There’s hope on the horizon.’
No wonder people are distrustful. Many of us are still under fire and living in those same broken systems. Others have had time to reach the top and glance back at the scene behind us. We’re experiencing survivor guilt and the effects of trauma. Sure, we can now see what is ahead of us, but we’re wary of stray shots – why do you think we blench every time there is an article or comment threatening the NDIS?
What is important is that once we’re over the rise, we have time to strategise. Work out what went wrong and how it went right. We can organise ourselves into teams and find time to look sideways and no longer have to crawl on our bellies. That is what peer support is all about.
I want to be able to look back and remember all those people who fought on that field, all of them, but also look forward to the future. So many of my friends and peers have died waiting for an NDIS – I belong to the muscular dystrophy community. I hope that in future years we will not have to be soldiers and that we will not have to feel as though we are constantly under fire. I hope that we will be able to look sideways at others and help them through the tough times, just like anybody else does.
Sam is a disability activist, consultant and social media assassin. She spends far too much time working on disability issues and far too little time patting her bulldogs. To connect with Sam, find her on Facebook.
Clickability editorial update: October 2026
Choose a peer space that feels useful to you
Ask how a group works, what information is shared and whether you can listen without telling your story. Consider access, moderation and the kind of conversation you want. You can value shared experience while disagreeing with advice or choosing not to attend.
Check any funding or service claim against current rules before acting on it. Current peer-support program information explains the broader government pathway. If discussion brings up distress, seek appropriate support; Lifeline offers crisis support, and emergencies require 000.
Respect peer knowledge without outsourcing your responsibilities
Offer usable information and time to consider decisions. Do not expect a peer group to correct unclear agreements, unsafe practice or missing communication from your service. With consent, support access to a suitable group while keeping professional and reporting responsibilities clear.
Questions readers ask
Does a peer group replace clinical support?
No. Different forms of help have different roles.
Find assistance with the support needs you want to address
Tell Clickability the practical support you are looking for. Compare providers and ask how they communicate alongside any peer or clinical support you choose.
