How do i register for or join a support meeting? Guidance for joining face to face and online Bipolar UK support meetings Expand Online support meetings Local meetings You can join a local zoom meeting - check our Find a Support Group page for details - by emailing [email protected] stating the name and date of the group you want to attend in the subject line of the email. You will be sent joining details by email. National and specialist meetings For national or specialist meetings (aimed at particular groups or about a particular topic), please Visit our online events diary. Face to face meetings At the time of writing (April 2021) we do not have any face to face meetings taking pace and we hope this will change over the summer For up to date details of online and face to face meetings go to: Find a support group near you
What happens at a Bipolar UK support group? Meetings may vary with a general discussion and sharing of experience or a specific topic sometimes with an invited speaker Expand The format of support meetings may differ from place to place and all are guided by our Code of conduct The meetings are led by co-facilitators, trained volunteers who are themselves affected by bipolar in some way. What is the format? Usually people attending will begin by sharing what their mood is like using the Bipolar UK mood scale Then facilitators may invite people to suggest particular topics they would like to talk about Some groups invite external speakers to address their meetings Do I have to speak at a meeting? You do not have to talk at the meeting if you don't want to and in online meetings you can attend with your camera switched off When and where do groups take place? At the time of writing (July 2021) most meetings are online but this will change in the coming months Up-to-date information about our support groups, including times, dates and booking details, can be found on the Find a support group page Will I be expected to come to all the meetings? No, there is no commitment. You can attend as many or as few meetings as you want Do I have to stay for the whole meeting? No, you're free to leave whenever you want
Is an online support meeting right for me? Bipolar UK is hosting online support meetings, find out what's involved Expand We appreciate that not everyone is familiar with technology, nor has access to the right kit, but if you would like to join an online support meeting Our Support Groups are intended for people aged 18 and above. If you're aged between 16 and 18 you can attend a Support Group if you're accompanied by a parent or guardian You are welcome to bring someone with you to the group to provide you with support. If the carer is acting within a professional capacity, we ask that they attend in this role rather than as an active participant of the group Visit our Find a Support Group page for details and booking Otherwise, we have a number of alternatives: eCommunity – our online peer forum available 24/7 Peer Support Line – our phone and email service Our website with downloadable resources Our chatbot to ask factual questions about bipolar - on the right side of this page
My face-to-face group is on hold - how can i find an online one? Our in person support groups will resume as soon as is safe to do do and you can find out about online or face to face Bipolar UK support groups Expand To find a local support group you can Use the postcode search in the chatbot (Type "support groups" in the chatbot on the right hand side of this page) Visit our Find a Support Group page where local, national and specialist groups are listed (most of these meet monthly) If your local group is not listed, you can also find a list of groups which are temporarily on hold
What happens at an online meeting? Tips and information about Bipolar UK online meetings Expand Five minutes before the meeting: Click on the link provided in the email If you don't already have zoom on your device, download the zoom Desktop Client. Follow the prompts to download the correct zoom desktop client for your computer and operating system. Your zoom Desktop Client will download. You will then need to install the client. Note that you may also download clients for IOS and Android devices. Once you have downloaded the desktop client, you can now join the meeting. You may have to click on the link again in the email to connect to the meeting, once you have installed the client. Please review the following additional support documents: Zoom US and Zoom support. Can anyone present record the meeting? No meeting should be recorded. If a recording is taking place, a red light appears at the top of the screen. Bipolar UK does not authorise or make recordings. Can you access a meeting via phone if you have no computer? Yes you can, you will be admitted to the group in the same way as people using a computer or tablet. Please check you have the correct phone number. What about privacy and confidentiality? Bipolar UK take privacy and confidentiality seriously and you can read our privacy notice here We also ask that when signing into a Bipolar UK online meeting Use your first name only onscreen Do not have visible items in your video background which can identify you or others close to you Do you remove anyone from meetings needing more support? Not necessarily, it depends on the person’s presenting needs. Bipolar UK will offer support in a 1-1 using the chat function or a breakout room where a host and co-host are present. If we feel the forum is not suitable and the person would benefit from more support off-line via their mental health team, crisis team or emergency services we will recommend they seek immediate local help. A list of crisis numbers are provided with the meeting invitation email. What if a person is abusive or looks to have “zoom bombed” a meeting? Since the addition of waiting rooms and passwords, zoom has taken steps to reduce this option. We will only send to closed invite list and will use the remove function if we are concerned about a person(s) behaviour. We are not publicly advertising our zoom meeting details. Bipolar UK reserve the right to refuse entry and to not work with people within our face-to-face or online groups who are abusive. Find out more about online support groups - read this interview with one of our pioneering zoom group volunteers.
Are zoom meetings free? All Bipolar UK services are free to use and if you wish to support us with a donation that is most welcome Expand Bipolar UK offers local online support groups via zoom, plus national meetings, some of which are topic based or focus on the needs of a particular group e.g. young people. All our meetings are free. Find a support group near you
What are the technical requirements? Do I need a zoom account? How can i join a zoom meeting? Expand You do not have to have a zoom account to attend an online meeting. You will be prompted to download the software, once you have clicked on the link in your invitation. You may also wish to create an account, but that is optional, you can take part via your browser. System requirements This is what you need on your device to get started with zoom If you want to know more about zoom, check out the zoom getting started pages