Whakapapa/About Us

Balance Aotearoa is dedicated to providing high-quality peer support, advocacy, consultancy, and education in the areas of mental health and addiction. Our mission is to support people in strengthening their wellbeing and relationships, through approaches grounded in lived experience, connection, and empowerment.

We work alongside people experiencing significant mental or emotional distress and addiction challenges - whether they are living in urban or rural communities, or in acute psychiatric or forensic inpatient settings. We operate with an open-door policy: anyone who identifies as needing support is welcome.

At a national level, we serve as consultants and advisors, advocating for the human rights of disabled people and amplifying the voices of those with lived experience of distress and addiction.

Our peer support kaupapa can be summarised as:
“To connect, empower and advocate for tāngata whai ora / people with lived experience of mental distress and/or addiction..”

Originally founded in the mid-1990s as Balance Whanganui, our roots lie in mutual self-help groups for people experiencing mood disorders. Today, Balance Aotearoa offers holistic, recovery-focused group programs, as well as individual peer support for anyone experiencing mental distress and addiction.