BRUNSWICK (WGME) — A new mental health support center is now open in Brunswick.
A ribbon cutting event was held for the SupportME Peer Center Tuesday.
It’s now one of the six peer facilities here in Maine.
It’s located off Bath Road near Cooks Corner in Brunswick and it’s designed to help people with mental health and substance abuse challenges.
The nonprofit community mental health provider Sweetser is behind this center.
SupportME Peer Center in Brunswick. (WGME)
They say one and five adults here in Maine struggle with mental illness.
This center aims to help combat that, it’s a peer-only space funded by a grant from DHHS that’s completely free to anyone.
“It’s an inclusive space, free of charge, kind of drop-in space where people can come and access community and connection, who have lived experience, so if they are experiencing some sort of mental health challenge, substance use, anything related to that, even life-interrupting trauma, they are welcome here,” Sweetser Director of Recovery Services Alaina Knox said.
There is group and one-on-one support available for people to learn new life skills.
Most importantly, the peers running the facility have been through similar experiences.
“A great team of peer support specialists who care very deeply for their communities and to sharing the message that they have received through recovery and to be able to show up for people who are struggling or at a different phase of their recovery journey,” Knox said.
SupportME Peer Center in Brunswick. (WGME)
Currently, 10 thousand Mainers are on a waitlist for mental health services.
Centers like theirs are a step in the right direction, but more still needs to be done.
“A lack of resources across the state, especially resources that have such low barrier that there isn’t a lot of hoops to jump through to access them. With this center, they can come in and they don’t even need to provide their name,” Knox said.
The center is now open weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.