Sandi MacDonald, IAPMD Co-Founder and Executive Director, and Brett Buchert, IAPMD Peer Support Coordinator and Co-Founder of Me v PMDD, were pleased to present on PMDD and IAPMD’s Peer Support services at the iNAPS 2019 Annual Conference: Daring To Rise on Oct 21-23, 2019 in San Diego, California.

The International Association of Peer Supporters (iNAPS) is a non-profit organization that promotes emerging and best practices in peer support and peer workforce development. 

“Daring to Rise may mean different things to various individuals,” says Mike Weaver MS, CPSS, iNAPS Executive Director. “To me, it means that I am going to emphasize the value of sharing my lived experience, that I belong in healthcare and other community organizations as a peer supporter with respect that is equal to other professionals in the field.”

“I enjoyed learning about the diversity of the peer support profession,” says Brett Buchert. During the event, Brett gave a one-hour presentation on premenstrual disorders and IAPMD while Sandi immersed herself in training on peer support supervision and networking with other leaders in peer support. “I appreciated learning about the National Practice Guidelines for Supervision of Peer Support Specialists and the many networking opportunities the event provided.” This year, Sandi was elected to the iNAPS Board of Directors for a two-year term where she plans to advocate for the role of peer support in healthcare for reproductive issues, including PMDD and PME.

“IAPMD was founded out of peer support - a handful of us connecting online to support each other through our PMDD times. Our focus on peer support as a crucial aspect of care for individuals with premenstrual disorders has never wavered since our founding, ” Sandi shared. In fact, since 2014, IAPMD has provided free peer support, information, and resources to over 450k individuals. Seeing the immense positive impact peer support has on individuals living with PMDD and PME and their loved ones, we have made Care and Support a key area of focus in our 2019-2021 strategic plan. Support for IAPMD programs and services, including Care and Support, is the focus for this year’s Giving Tuesday, an international day of giving. For more information, visit iapmd.org/givingtuesday.