The gift of peer support: Advocacy Unlimited works to open conversations

by Mara Dresner

Contributing Writer

For more than 30 years, Advocacy Unlimited has provided holistic, peer-led resources in the areas of mental health, addiction and trauma. After being located in Newington and New Britain, the nonprofit moved to Rocky Hill.

“We moved to Rocky Hill because of the community,” Executive Director Michaela Fissel said. “This felt like a place we wanted to call home.”

Michaela Fissel, executive director of Advocacy Unlimited, believes in the power of peer-led recovery. (Mara Dresner)

The organization started in 1994 as the Community Advocacy Education Division (CAED), a branch of Connecticut Legal Rights Project (CLRP), becoming independently incorporated in the spring of 1998. It was renamed Advocacy Unlimited, Inc.

“First and foremost, we provide holistic, peer-led recovery resources, and as a peer-led organization, that means all of us as team members use our direct, lived experience with mental addiction and trauma recovery to walk with others as they create lives worth living beyond a psychiatric diagnosis,” Fissel said.

Kristen Repoli is an operator for the Join Rise Be warmline, which she said “allows for a non-judgmental space to share as much as you are comfortable with.” (submitted photo)

“We’re more than what has happened to us. We offer education, advocacy and support statewide.”

Services are organized into four primary groups: peer-delivered education, peer support, holistic wellness and young adult services. They are available in person and virtually.

“Peer support is an evidence-based practice. It’s a form of support delivered by people in recovery to others navigating their own recovery journey,” Fissel said.

“I’ve been there, so therefore I have insight I’ve gained that I can share with others. We couple with clinically oriented services. Both are essential.”

She has been with Advocacy Unlimited for 11 years, including seven as executive director. The agency served more than 10,500 people in 2024, including youth and young adults. It offers a number of different services for a variety of needs.

“We have a unique service for folks transitioning from psychiatric care. We offer specialized peer support to those transitioning from inpatient and residential services. It really is a niche. Community integration is such an important part of recovery,” Fissel said.

“We are the only organization that provides one-on-one support in the state. We need more specialized services in that area. Time continues and there’s almost suspended animation while someone is in an inpatient or residential space. Folks get released and the question is ‘how do I catch up?’”

Join Rise Be is geared toward young adults, offering a “warmline” for phone-based peer support. Join Rise Be operators are available every day from noon to 9 p.m.

“It’s the only peer-led recovery initiative in the state of Connecticut that’s specialized for 18- to 29-year-olds. There are unique developmental and generational trends and we must tailor programs to meet them where they’re at,” Fissel said.

“It’s also staffed by young people. It’s by young people and for young people. I launched this program as a young adult myself and brought it to Advocacy Unlimited when I joined. Young people are able to move forward, not just in recovery, but also transition to move forward in adulthood.”

Kristen Repoli is an operator for the Join Rise Be warmline and is certified as a recovery support specialist and in intentional peer support.

“During my childhood and adolescent years I had received a plethora of treatments from the result of various forms of trauma, grief and loss. Throughout my journey I have been continually connecting and sharing with my peers,” she said.

“It had allowed me to catch a glimpse of other people’s perspectives and broaden my understanding that there are so many diverse ways to go about recovery. I’ve always enjoyed learning from others and opening my eyes to what lies beyond the surface level of the mental health field and discussing these vulnerable – and often taboo – experiences,” Repoli added.

She first came to Advocacy Unlimited via its Young Adult Advisory Board meetings where she participated in the RISE young adult leadership course.

The recovery support specialist training “strongly resonated with the idea of using my own lived experience in mental health wellness to support and validate others who may have experienced similar situations,” Repoli said.

“I believe the warmline is so important for others who call because we can hold space and recommend resources to those struggling. It allows for a non-judgmental space to share as much as you are comfortable with,” she added.

“Some callers use us as a place to process their experiences and feel heard, which is something I greatly value during times of turmoil.”

Advocacy Unlimited has “a diverse community of employees from an array of different backgrounds who are all so dedicated, passionate and welcoming to support others in unlocking their potential for growth and recovery. Each person’s recovery is so unique and we hope to foster a collective space for people to align to their truest self within harnessing their own unique abilities.”

Advocacy Unlimited programs are offered free and funded by grants and individual donations. The organization is currently raising funds to install an elevator to make its two-story building fully accessible.

“Our goal is $150,000. We offer support groups on the second floor and we want to be sure everyone can access the support groups,” Fissel said.

Sometimes, people are feeling stuck or are negotiating a major life change. That’s where Advocacy Unilimited’s Community Bridger program comes in.

“Anyone can call and get a Community Bridger. We all go through big stuff in our lives. We have the rug pulled out from beneath us and it can feel scary. When those questions come to mind, that’s when a Bridger can be helpful. It’s short-term support for navigating life challenges,” Fissel said.

“Bridgers also support big life-changing moments. We had one woman, her husband died and it was devastating for her, and she benefitted from having a person walk with her as she reorganized her life and processed her life.”

Meetings can take place in a variety of settings, including at home, a park, a coffee shop, or by phone or video call.

“I’ve trained thousands of people and I’ve never had a person say they’ve never had a life-altering experience where they wouldn’t benefit from talking to someone. Everyone has those moments,” she said.

She has trained people in a variety of professions, including first responders, educators and major executives.

“We don’t have saber-tooth tigers today, we have Eversource. We are living in a time where chronic stress is part of our experience,” she said.

Advocacy Unlimited also offers several community educational programs, including programs on how to work with people who have thoughts of suicide and those who hear voices or experience alternative realities.

“Those are taboo topics. We specialize in that,” Fissel said.

Those who are interested in these programs can contact Advocacy Unlimited directly.

“We don’t assess or treat people. We leave that to the clinical folks, that’s their expertise,” Fissel said. “We only receive self-referrals walking through our door or signing up for our programming.”

This programming is nationally recognized and Fissel said that peer recovery services fit well with more traditional clinical services.

“They couple so well together; they’re synergistic. One of the principles of recovery is multiple pathways and synergistic. There’s no wrong door. And holistic, consider the whole person,” she said.

“With peer recovery, we meet people where they’re at and we don’t require a diagnosis. It’s the sharing of direct lived experience that creates the transformation state. It’s like the gift of peer support,” she added.

“For example, I’m a survivor of childhood sexual trauma. I experienced homelessness from 17 to 19. I had engagement with the criminal justice system. I’ve had thoughts of suicide. This is part of my experience,” Fissel said.

“I’ve had to figure out how to create a life worth living while having lived through all that. When I think about that for myself, I am still in awe that I’ve been able to move through all that and arrive where I am, that I am a mother to beautiful children, that I’m an executive director of a nonprofit. I am living proof that recovery is possible.”

Fissel is open about her recovery.

“So many people are living in shame, secrecy and silence. We know recovery happens in community. That’s why being a peer-led community is essential because we create space for that dialogue,” she said. “You never know who you are inspiring.” RHL

To learn more about Advocacy Unlimited, or to make a donation, visit advocacyunlimited.org.