Support Groups in Fort Lauderdale: Recovery Meetings and Mental Health Resources

Recovery rarely happens in isolation, and the Fort Lauderdale recovery community is one of the larger recovery communities in South Florida. Whether you are struggling with an addiction, a mental health disorder, or both, there are plenty of support groups and recovery meetings available across the city to give you the connection and accountability you need during recovery.

Below is a closer review of some of the support groups and recovery meetings you can find and ways to see which is the right fit for you.

What Types of Support Groups and Recovery Meetings Are Available in Fort Lauderdale?

Support groups in Fort Lauderdale usually fall in one of two categories: recovery meetings focused on substance abuse or mental health support groups that focus on conditions like anxiety, mental illness, or other issues resulting from life transitions. Many people benefit from both types of support groups since substance use and health issues so frequently co-occur.

Recovery meetings can vary from popular programs like Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) to newer approaches that include SMART Recovery and Refuge Recovery. The mental health support groups are commonly organized through NAMI Broward County, which is a local affiliate organization of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

NAMI Broward County supports several mental health and family-focused peer-led support groups throughout Fort Lauderdale and nearby communities like Pembroke Pines.

Recovery Meetings in Fort Lauderdale

AA Meetings in Fort Lauderdale

All AA meetings follow the original 12-step program model and are free to attend and open to everyone who wishes to quit drinking, no matter how long they have been sober. Local AA directors provide an easy way to locate meetings by day, time, and format.

AA meetings are held throughout Fort Lauderdale nearly every day of the week, in locations ranging from community centers to local churches. Meetings follow the traditional 12-step model and are open to anyone who wants to stop drinking, regardless of how long they’ve been sober.

Local AA directories make it easy to search for meetings by day, time, and format.

SMART Recovery in Fort Lauderdale

SMART Recovery provides an alternative to traditional 12-step programs, drawing on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), a type of talk therapy that helps people identify and change their negative thought processes and behaviors.

SMART Recovery meetings are available in the Fort Lauderdale area, both in person and remotely. People seeking a more structured, skill-based approach to recovery often do better with SMART Recovery’s methods.

Find a SMART Recovery meeting near you by clicking here.

Refuge Recovery Meetings Fort Lauderdale

Refuge Recovery meetings incorporate elements of mindfulness practices inspired by Buddhism, where participants focus on the present moment without judgment about their thoughts, emotions, physical sensations, or their environment, and share experiences about overcoming their addiction with peer support.

Refuge Recovery meetings are not as widely available as AA and SMART Recovery, so finding a meeting near you might require contacting a local meditation center or searching for the local Refuge Recovery group that meets near your home. Participants often choose to attend Refuge Recovery meetings because they seek a spiritual perspective for achieving recovery that is not strictly affiliated with any religion.

You can use their online directory to find the Refuge Recovery meeting closest to you.

Mental Health Support Groups Through NAMI Broward County

NAMI Broward County offers several peer-led and family-focused programs for people struggling with mental health, all at no cost.

Some of the most common include:

• NAMI Connection: A peer-led support group for adults with mental health conditions who wish to share their experience with others who may be facing similar challenges.
• NAMI Family Support Group: A peer-led support group that provides a place for family members to find support from each other as they cope with having a loved one with a mental illness.
• NAMI Family-to-Family: An educational program for family members and caregivers of those with mental illness, providing them with the tools needed to manage their role as caregiver and take care of themselves at the same time.
• NAMI Peer-to-Peer: A structured program for adults who live with a mental health condition; it provides the opportunity for participants to learn recovery skills and promote self-compassion.
• NAMI In Our Own Voice: These presentations focus on removing the stigma associated with mental illness by using stories of lived experience of those diagnosed with mental illnesses.
• NAMI Homefront: This program offers specific support to veterans and military families dealing with mental health issues and service-related life transitions.

Each of the above programs typically meets in accessible public spaces across Fort Lauderdale, so residents of nearby areas throughout Broward County can attend without worrying about traveling too far.

Professional Therapy Options in Fort Lauderdale

For many people, supplementing support groups with professional counseling or therapy is the best approach to a comprehensive addiction or mental health recovery plan, rather than relying on either form of support by itself.[1] Fort Lauderdale has many professional support options, including licensed mental health counselors (LMHC) or licensed clinical social workers (LCSW), each utilizing a variety of therapeutic approaches to address individual needs.

Examples of common therapy types you can find in Fort Lauderdale include:

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): Identifies negative thought patterns and behaviors that contribute to distressing symptoms, then assists the client in replacing these thoughts and actions with healthier alternatives.
• Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR): Helps the client process traumatic memories, reducing long-term emotional reactions.
• Exposure Therapy: Helps clients confront their fears in a safe manner and gradually build confidence in managing fears related to anxiety disorders.
• Group Therapy: Clients work with a small group of peers working through similar struggles in facilitated groups to develop relationships, gain mutual support, improve communication skills, and develop healthy coping mechanisms.
• Expressive Arts Therapy: Uses art, music, or movement as ways for clients to express emotions that may otherwise be difficult to verbalize.

Many therapists also incorporate mindfulness and other holistic approaches into individual and group formats, which may help reduce stress, anxiety, and other psychological symptoms as part of a comprehensive treatment plan.[2]

Where Can I Find In-Person and Online Recovery Meetings in Fort Lauderdale?

Most recovery meetings and support groups in Fort Lauderdale can be found through a combination of resources:

• Program-specific websites: AA, NA, SMART Recovery, and NAMI Broward County all maintain searchable meeting directories.
• 211 Broward helpline: A free, confidential referral service that can connect callers with local meetings and mental health support groups based on their specific needs.
• Treatment centers: Many outpatient providers maintain lists of local meetings and can help connect clients with the right fit for their situation.
• Online meeting platforms: Most major recovery organizations, including AA, NA, SMART Recovery, and NAMI, now offer regular online or hybrid meetings, which can be especially helpful for people with limited transportation or scheduling constraints.

How Support Groups Help Long-Term Recovery

Support groups fill a gap that therapy alone cannot fill. While therapy addresses the clinical aspects of recovery, being able to connect with people who have experienced similar struggles with addiction or mental illness provides a vital aspect to their recovery.

Support groups create a sense of accountability, create opportunities to engage in social activities that reduce feelings of isolation, and provide practical advice and strategies from others who have been successful in managing their addictions or mental illnesses.

Research indicates that the relationship between social connections and sustained recovery is significant for both those recovering from addiction and mental illness.[3] Many people in Fort Lauderdale may find combining professional treatment with participation in a peer-support group to be beneficial in creating a comprehensive recovery plan.

Continuing Care at Agape Treatment Center

Finding the right support group is an important component of recovery; however, this works best when combined with professional treatment.

Agape Treatment Center in Fort Lauderdale provides outpatient services for substance abuse disorders and co-occurring mental health disorders, and our team can work with you to find meetings and support groups in your community. To learn about how you can become involved in your recovery process, reach out to Agape Treatment Center today.

Frequently Asked Questions About Support Groups in Fort Lauderdale