About the workshop:

Having a narrative for our lives is healing. There is power in knowing and living this in our own lives and there is power in sharing our stories and insights with others.

When we share our lived experiences the purpose, audience, context and our vulnerability related to them are important considerations. We will explore how we share our stories safely, for ourselves and for the people that hear-read-witness them, valuing the perspective and strength they bring to our efforts for making sense and making a difference.

This workshop will provide a foundation for honouring recovery journeys and using our experiences to create change. The focus is on sharing in ways that are safe, purposeful and geared for influence. Our change efforts may be aimed at the individual, service or system level; all are necessary and important.

Who the workshop is for:

Sharing our Stories Safely and for Influence is for people with lived experience of distress or mental health issues as a consumer or carer who may or may not be in a paid or representative lived experience role.

People who use their lived experience in other contexts, for example drug and alcohol or homelessness settings, will be able to apply the learning's from this session to their own experiences and areas of action.

Participants do not need to have experience of sharing or using their lived experience to influence change.

Themes covered:

* exploring what we mean by, and our experience of, sharing stories safely

* lived experience stories

* story 'politics'

* individual and/or collective stories

* our purpose for sharing

* the places, spaces and ways that we share

* sharing to influence

* public narratives as a leadership skill

* the strength of our stories to drive change