Bringing GPS to refugees

“I think we can all agree that policies and practices around refugee resettlement are pretty flawed,” says Aimee Grace Mitchell, founder of Places to Thrive, a nonprofit that creates opportunities for people experiencing forced displacement to heal. “Displacement is inherently traumatic. There’s no room for people to just be people. The entire experience is dehumanizing.”

One of the ways Mitchell is trying to change that is by bringing the model of GPS Group Peer Support (GPS) to people experiencing forced displacement not only due to war, but also climate change, religious persecution, and oppressive laws and policies that target people based on their identity, such as LGBTQIA+ people, or separate family members from one another.

Mitchell, a seasoned trauma clinician with 25 years’ experience, first heard about the GPS model in a 2021 Zoom meeting for clinicians, activists, funders, and others strategizing ways to support the influx of Afghan refugees after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan. Over 2.5 million people fled the country and nearly 100,000 were immediately evacuated to the United States. At the time, Mitchell oversaw a program that was providing emergency services to approximately 500 Afghan women.

Amid lots of talk in the meeting about how to provide food, clothing, and shelter, Mitchell recalls, someone raised their hand and asked, “What are you doing to support the mental health of these people?”

“Liz is the one who asked that question,” Mitchell says, referring to GPS CEO Liz Friedman.

“I answered, ‘We’re completely overwhelmed. We’re supporting hundreds of people, and the trauma is off the scales — it’s greater than anything I’ve ever seen.”

The two women connected after the meeting and Mitchell learned about the ways in which GPS had been successfully deployed in communities ranging from parents dealing with postpartum depression to residents of rural areas living with chronic conditions to people dealing with substance use disorder.

She immediately agreed to bring GPS to the people she was working with.

“We adapted the GPS curriculum to make it more relevant for Afghan women,” Mitchell says.

The result was “GPS Sofreh-eh-del/De Shezo Dester Khwan” (“Coming together of the heart” in Pashto and Dari), which has subsequently been adapted for use with refugees from other countries including Sudan and Rwanda.

“We worked really hard to get those groups off the ground and it was a challenge,” Mitchell recalls. “Many folks who’ve experienced being a war refugee lock away their trauma. They don’t want to touch it, and when you hear the stories of what they have gone through, you can understand why.”

What ultimately worked, Mitchell says, was the GPS model’s unique approach to group dynamics. Unlike traditional group interventions where interaction is key, GPS creates a space for individuals to share without advice or interruption.

“I’ve never heard of a group where people aren’t actually connecting and speaking together,” Mitchell said. “Usually, most of the idea around group intervention is that people come together, and they share and reflect, and there’s a lot more interaction.”

However, Mitchell was struck by the immediate vulnerability and openness she witnessed in GPS sessions. “As I watched people share, I was blown away. As people talked, it was as if they were exhaling for the first time in a long time. As a clinician I’d never really thought about what it means to listen but not give advice in a group. But based on what I witnessed in the groups, I think it’s incredibly liberating for people.”

Mitchell subsequently enrolled in GPS Facilitator Training where she says she was equally impressed. “It’s very high quality. The trainers are exceptionally skilled, and you can see how they’re mentoring new trainers that are coming up. They are incredibly well versed in the GPS theory of change which is rooted in understanding trauma, intergenerational trauma, racial trauma, and the impact of ACES (adverse childhood experiences) on development.”

Would she recommend GPS facilitator training to other clinicians?

“Absolutely,” she says. “I highly recommend it. We all talk about community-based this and community-based that. Well, GPS is truly about community-based healing. When you’re in a GPS group, you are simply in that moment with people who are being seen and heard for exactly who they are. It’s incredibly powerful for everyone — participants and facilitators alike.”