By Kai Le
In a quiet room tucked inside the Footscray Library, something remarkable happens once a month. Strangers become companions in a shared journey. Stories are told and laughter—tentative but healing—bubbles up in between. This is the Footscray Anxiety Support Group, and for many, it is the missing piece in their recovery puzzle.
Run by the Anxiety Recovery Centre Victoria (ARCVic), this free community group brings together people who live with anxiety to connect, reflect, and support one another. But it is not therapy in the traditional sense. Instead, what you will find is a circle of chairs, open hearts, and a quiet kind of courage.
Peer support offers something uniquely powerful: the comfort of shared experience. In these gatherings, individuals come together to share their journeys, challenges, and triumphs. This mutual exchange fosters a sense of belonging and understanding that can be profoundly healing.
Each session is participant-led and gently facilitated by trained volunteers to ensure a safe, respectful space. People are free to share or simply listen. There’s no pressure, no judgment, and everything shared is confidential. What grows over time is not just trust, but a sense of shared strength—the knowledge that recovery does not have to be solitary.
The group meets on the fourth Wednesday of every month from 6:00 to 7:30 PM, in the conference room at Footscray Library. Attendance is free and the space is open for everyone. If you would like to come along, you can register through ARCVic’s website.
Whether you are just beginning to explore help, or you have been managing anxiety for years, you are welcome. You do not need to have the right words. You do not need to be “better.” You just need to show up and share the moments with us.
Because sometimes, the missing piece in our healing is not found in a prescription or a diagnosis—it is found in the simple words: “Me too!”
For more information, visit arcvic.org.au or call ARCVic at 1300 269 438.
