How to Start and Facilitate a Support Group for Victims of Stalking

Getting Started• Please talk about your experience being stalked. Are you currently being stalked? Howoften? In what ways?• How well do you know your stalker?• How dangerous do you think the stalker is? Does the stalker have access to weapons?• How do you cope with the stalking?• What is your support system? Who does it include?• Have you previously sought any other help for stalking? What was that experience like?• Do you have any type of protective order against your stalker?• How would you describe your current emotional state?• Why are you interested in attending this group?There are no “right” or “wrong” answers to these questions. They serve primarily as a wayfor the facilitator to assess how the victim may fit in the group, what special considerations thevictim might have, group safety issues related to the stalker’s behavior, and if the victim mightbe better served by a different program.Referrals to Other Groups and AgenciesNot everyone who inquires about membership will be appropriate for the stalking supportgroup. Sometimes, a group can’t meet an individual’s specific needs, or a person’s participationmight prevent other members from reaching their goals. Facilitators can best serve these individualsby referring them to other service providers in the community for one-on-one or othergroup support. (Organizers can refer to their community assessment for a list of agencies andorganizations for referrals.) Some potential members may have additional conflicts that preventthem from attending groups (e.g., lack of adequate transportation, childcare, scheduling conflicts).Facilitators can help them find transportation or childcare or, if the problem cannot beresolved, provide information about other available services and resources. An individual whoseexpectations or goals differ significantly from the group’s may need to be referred to a differentagency. 28 For example, someone seeking to improve stalking laws would likely not benefitfrom a support group that has not included legislative advocacy as part of its group purpose.Facilitators can provide such individuals with contact information for agencies or organizationsinvolved in political advocacy.Individuals who need more extensive mental health services than the group can providealso need referrals to other community services. Individuals in emotional crisis may speak ofsuicide or homicide, or have mental health problems that the group cannot address. For example,one group facilitator interviewed a potential member who described being stalked bysomeone who was sending “electrically transmitted messages to her brain.” While the facilitatorrecognized the possibility that this person was a stalking victim, she knew that no technologyexists for this type of stalking. Because the group was not set up to address mental health problems,the facilitator explained that the group would not be able to help the potential member28 Toseland, An Introduction, 161-64.27