The Foundations of Peer Support

Five Fundamental Beliefs About Life – Foundation for Peer Support:

● Everyone has the ability to learn and grow.

● People’s beliefs determine their behavior.

● People think their way through life.

● Whatever people focus on, they give power to.

● Life’s experiences are the best teacher.

Beliefs re-stated within the context of Mental Health and Recovery:

• Being diagnosed with a mental health injury does not take away the ability to learn and grow; people can recover and often gain new wisdom they take with them in their new experiences.

• When you start to understand what beliefs or actions (if any) brought you to a place in life where you developed an OSI, it gives you a chance to look at those beliefs with fresh eyes. Were there any beliefs you would choose not to bring forward with you in life? Is there any advice you would give someone at the start of their profession that you wish you had known? What do you believe is true about yourself?

• Being diagnosed with a psychological injury does not permanently take away your ability to be strategic and creative. Often people with an OSI develop new skills as part of their recovery.

• Life's experiences are still the best teacher. With your new insight and experience, where will this take you? What will you gain from this experience? In recovery, we start to see the gifts we have received from this injury and view it with a new perspective.

"Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail." -Ralph Waldo Emerson

To access peer support please visit:

Our mission is to inspire hope and contribute to the continuous well-being and recovery process of Veterans and Front Line Protectors across Canada.

We seek to empower and encourage them to strive for recovery through peer and professional support while creating greater public awareness.​

We at OSI-CAN do not see PTSD or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder as a Disorder, we see it as an Injury you can recover from. If you are suffering from the symptoms of an Occupational or Operational Stress Injury, then a PTSD or PTSI diagnosis is not required to get our help

The target demographic of OSI-CAN is, but not limited to:

Former and serving members of the Canadian Armed Forces, Allied Armed Forces, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Frontline Protectors --- which include Municipal Police Services, CN Police Services, Emergency Medical Services, Fire Protection Services, Wildland Firefighters, Hospital Trauma personnel, Nurses, healthcare Workers, Social Workers, Animal Control Officers, Medical Examiners/Coroners, Indigenous Emergency Management, Victim Services Personnel, Emergency Communications Specialist/COMMS Personnel, Correctional Officers, “Volunteer” First Responders, Conservation Officers, Aboriginal Emergency Services personnel, Tow Truck drivers who clean up accident scenes and their spouses/partners. This demographic was chosen due to the commonality of experiences they share through the service they provide to the country and community.

We have a special interest and support volunteer first responders as they are not eligible for programs such as Workers' Compensation.