New Volunteer Training for the Parent Support Warm Line

Come volunteer with us!

The Warm Line was started by parents who never wanted another parent to feel alone and not know what to do. We offer free phone, text, and email support where peer volunteers help parents make a wellness plan, find resources, share stories, and just listen.

Training Date:

• Saturday, November 16 & Sunday, November 17, 2024, 9:00am-1:45pm

Training Location: Zoom

Are you a parent who has experienced and recovered from postpartum depression, anxiety, postpartum psychosis or other perinatal mental health issues, or suffered a perinatal loss, birth trauma or experienced the NICU? We are looking for parent volunteers including dads, LGBTQ+ parents, and BIPOC parents to assist those reaching out to our Warm Line for support.

About Peer Support

The line is staffed by volunteers who are parents that have experienced a perinatal mood and/or anxiety disorder and have recovered. Parents calling the line often feel alone in their feelings or shame for the feelings they are having. Tallking with another parent who has been in a similar situation validates their struggles and helps on their healing journey. Receiving and providing peer support is unique and powerful for both the volunteer and parent! 

Make a difference in other’s lives – offer hope and community to other parents!

We are recruiting volunteers for 3 positions:

• Live Answer Volunteer: Answer calls during a 4 hour weekday shift.
• Evening Volunteer: Volunteer 2 evenings, every 4 -7 weeks by responding (same day or within 12 hours) to callers who leave a voicemail, email, or text.
• Weekend Volunteer: Volunteer 3 days, every 5-8 weeks by responding (same day or within 12 hours) to callers who leave a voicemail, email, or text.

Volunteers offer peer support, wellness planning, and resources and referrals to callers on a short term (2 weeks) or long term (up to 3 months) basis. 

The Warm Line Volunteer Experience:

• Perinatal Support Washington (PS-WA) provides all the training and support you need to answer calls.
• Volunteers receive training on perinatal mental health issues, how to offer peer support, helping to build wellness plans, and more!
• Volunteers have access during their shift (and evenings and weekends) to Warm Line staff to answer questions or debrief calls.
• Warm Line volunteers receive discounted registration to most of PS-WA’s regular trainings.

Volunteer Training Logistics:

• 24 hours of recorded and live virtual training.
• Please know that the training on zoom is a participatory training. Learning to create and hold space for people to share their experiences requires learning what it is feels like to be with one another and be present. We are creating community through learning and sharing. Volunteers should plan to be at the whole training, video on for interactive portions, with limited multi-tasking.  In our busy world, and with online trainings, it can be very tempting to think that we can do more than one thing. Please give yourself and the community of learners a gift of allowing yourself to be with us each day, fully, and engaged.
• Please make arrangements for childcare.

Interested in learning more?

• Please fill out the short volunteer application below and we will be in touch with next steps.
• If you have any questions or want to learn more before filling out the application, please contact the Warm Line Program Manager at Victoria.cherniak@perinatalsupport.org

VOLUNTEER APPLICATION

What Warm Line VOLUNTEERS say about their experience:

• “Volunteering…allowed me to see the ability I held to help others. I could use my own perinatal experiences to provide support and understanding to those calling. I felt very isolated postpartum and craved community. Being a Warm Line volunteer allows me to extend community and resources to women like myself. I’m able to assist women in a way I wish I could have helped myself.” Emily R., Warm Line Volunteer

• “I have gained confidence that resources are out there and if we all work together, we CAN support families where they’re at and get them going on their healing journeys. It is so rewarding to me to be able to listen to others’ stories and know I can be a support person, even for a short time.” Kim G., Warm Line Volunteer

What Warm Line CALLERS say about their experience:

• “Prior to connecting with the warm line, I felt very alone in my experience… and felt less and less hopeful with each passing day. After speaking with a warm line volunteer, I felt hopeful. I knew someone understood my experience and was going to help create the connections with providers I was having difficulty facilitating.” Warm Line Caller
• “If WARM [Line] exists, I am not unique or alone in my issues, and someone out there cares and believes in the potential for health and happiness for my baby and me. With all the covid isolation, WARM [Line] has been a candle in the darkness … “ Warm Line Caller
• Click here to read one Warm Line caller’s story.