About our program
HAND’s Peer Support Program connects bereaved parents with a trained volunteer who has experienced their own pregnancy or infant loss and is able to offer individualized, one-on-one peer support. Our volunteers have walked their own grief journeys and bring compassionate listening, understanding, and resources to their conversations with other bereaved parents.
We try to match parents with a volunteer who has experienced a similar type of loss or can relate to other aspects of their experience, such as infertility, adoption, surrogacy, subsequent pregnancy, or parenting other children after a loss. Peer Support Volunteers are at different stages of their own grief journeys, and the program is not intended to match parents with someone who is at the same stage of grief or who experienced their loss recently. Most of our volunteers are several years or more beyond their own loss.
Our volunteers have a range of experiences with pregnancy loss and infant death, and we also have Peer Support Volunteers who speak other languages.
Please remember that peer support is not professional counseling or therapy. If you need more comprehensive support, HAND offers referrals to licensed psychotherapists and other resources.
Duration and frequency of support
The program is intended to provide up to 6 weeks of support; however, the frequency and duration of support will depend on your needs and the volunteer’s availability. You and your volunteer should decide on an arrangement that works best for both of you.
How the match process works
When you submit a request for peer support, a Peer Support Coordinator will review your request within 48 hours. They will reach out to you to confirm the details of your request and begin searching for a volunteer who best meets your criteria. Once they have found someone for you, they will introduce you both via email so you can communicate right away. The match process usually happens quickly but can take up to a week or so.
How to get connected
Please note: peer support matches are made one-on-one, and we are unable to provide couple-to-couple matches. If both partners would like support, each person is welcome to submit their own request. If you would like to meet with a volunteer together with your partner, you may indicate that in the form and we will do our best to accommodate your request.
Click here to fill out a Peer Support Request Form and a Peer Support Coordinator will be in touch with you shortly. Please check your spam folder to make sure you don’t miss their email. Many parents also find it helpful to attend HAND’s support group meetings. For more information, please visit our Meetings page.