From survivor to peer leader: Gippsland youth worker turns trauma into support

By AI, Created 5:06 AM UTC, June 03, 2026, /AGP/ – A Gippsland woman known as Dee has gone from childhood trauma and Youth Insearch programs to paid peer work supporting young people across the region. The story lands as local data shows Gippsland youth face higher mental health and suicide risks than their metropolitan peers, underscoring the demand for peer-led support.

Why it matters: - Gippsland young people face higher and more complex mental health pressures than their metropolitan peers. - Youth Insearch says its peer-led model gives young people support from people with lived experience, which can make help feel more relatable and accessible. - Dee’s path from participant to peer worker shows how early intervention and peer support can turn lived experience into a local workforce.

What happened: - Dee, a Gippsland resident, was removed from her parents’ care as a child after unstable home conditions, exposure to mental health crisis, drug and alcohol use, and family violence. - A Youth Insearch school presentation connected Dee to the charity’s peer-led programs for young people healing from adversity. - After attending multiple programs and completing further training, Dee became a Peer Leader. - In 2024, Youth Insearch employed Dee as a Peer Worker for East Gippsland. - Dee now supports young people across Gippsland who are facing challenges similar to those she experienced.

The details: - Dee said she grew up in a small regional town in government housing. - Dee said her parents’ relationship broke down when she was 14, her father stopped working, and both parents began drinking and using marijuana daily. - Dee said her father died unexpectedly in 2015, after which her mother experienced a mental breakdown and returned to drugs, alcohol and her earlier lifestyle. - Dee said her first Weekend Workshop in 2012 gave her a place to be “held, seen and heard” and to be around other young people with similar experiences. - Youth Insearch’s model pairs young people with lived experience and qualified clinicians. - Dee said the mix of young peer support and adult facilitation stood out to her. - Dee said Youth Insearch gave her relief, practical strategies and support she was not receiving at home. - Dee said she returned to the program because she wanted to work on herself, stop seeing herself as a victim of circumstances and become a leader. - Youth Insearch currently supports young people across Baw Baw, Latrobe City, Wellington, South Gippsland and East Gippsland shires. - Gippsland Primary Health Network data shows up to 17% of children and adolescents in the region experience a mental disorder each year. - The data also shows suicide and self-inflicted injury are leading causes of disease burden for people aged 15 to 44 in Gippsland. - Youth suicide rates in the region are above the Victorian average. - Young males in regional areas face about double the risk of their metropolitan peers. - Almost 60% of student presentations to Doctors in Secondary Schools clinics in Gippsland were related to mental health concerns.

Between the lines: - Dee’s story is a practical example of Youth Insearch’s case for peer-led support: lived experience can help build trust faster than a more distant service model. - The regional data suggests the need is not isolated to one family or one school; Gippsland’s youth mental health burden is broad and persistent. - Youth Insearch’s budget submissions point to a funding question, not just a service question, as the organisation seeks to expand reach in Gippsland and beyond.

What’s next: - Dee said she hopes to stay in the role as long as funding allows and continue making an impact on young people’s lives. - Youth Insearch is pressing for expanded investment through its Victorian and Federal Budget submissions. - More funding could let the organization extend its peer-support model to more young people in Gippsland and across Australia.

The bottom line: - Dee’s journey shows how peer-led youth support can move someone from receiving help to delivering it, at a time when Gippsland’s mental health needs remain high.