Revealing the power of peer support in the lives of women immigrants from Mexico

To address high rates of social isolation and depression among female Mexican immigrants, we are testing Tertulias (Spanish, conversational gatherings), an innovative peer support group intervention. Our anthropologically inspired theoretical architecture integrates gendered emplacement theory, women's funds of knowledge, and cultural and contextual situatedness. We used a community-driven, community-engaged research (CD-CEnR) design, involving 59 female Mexican immigrants who participated in weekly group meetings by Zoom. Data were gathered from survey and social network analysis (SNA), hair samples for cortisol testing at baseline and 12-months, and qualitative data from meeting notes, interviews, evaluation discussions, participant creative projects, and "Ripple Effects Mapping (REM)." As we describe, the Tertulias group meetings created a generative social environment that valued and incorporated participants' experience-based knowledge and enhanced social relationships, providing mechanisms for reducing social isolation and depression among participants. Para abordar altos & iacute;ndices de aislamiento social y depresi & oacute;n entre mujeres mexicanas inmigrantes, estamos poniendo a prueba Tertulias (pl & aacute;ticas de grupo en espa & ntilde;ol), una intervenci & oacute;n innovadora a trav & eacute;s de un grupo de apoyo m & uacute;tuo. Nuestra antropolog & iacute;a inspirada en la architectura te & oacute;rica integra, la teor & iacute;a de ubicaci & oacute;n de pertenencia de g & eacute;nero, los conocimientos de las mujeres en base a su experiencia y d & oacute;nde est & aacute;n situadas cultural y contextualmente hablando. Usamos un dise & ntilde;o de investigaci & oacute;n guiado por la comunidad e involucrando a la comunidad (CD-CEnR, siglas en ingl & eacute;s), involucrando a 59 mujeres inmigrantes mexicanas que participaron en reuniones de grupo semanales a trav & eacute;s de Zoom. Se recolectaron datos de encuestas y un an & aacute;lisis de lazos sociales al principio y 12 meses despu & eacute;s. (SNA, siglas en ingl & eacute;s), muestras de pelo para medir el cortisol al principio y 12 meses despu & eacute;s, y datos cualitativos de notas de las reuniones, entrevistas, pl & aacute;ticas evaluativas, proyectos creativos de las participantes y mapeo del efecto domino ["Ripple Effects Mapping (REM, siglas en ingl & eacute;s)]." Como lo describimos, las reuni & oacute;n en grupo de Tertulias crearon un ambiente social reproducible que valor & oacute; el conocimiento basado en la experiencia de la participantes y mejor & oacute; las relaciones sociales interpersonales, otorgando mecanismos para reducir el aislamiento social y la depresi & oacute;n entre las participantes. Our Tertulias peer support group model had positive impact on participants' mental and emotional health, social networks, access to and knowledge about resources, hair cortisol levels (as a biomarker for chronic stress), and sense of empowerment and resilience. Intervention participants describe the impact on their mental and emotional wellbeing, and on the ways that they changed and grew through participation in the Tertulias group. The Tertulias intervention decreases social isolation, depression, and stress, and increases empowerment, resilience, adaptability, social support, and social connectedness. Peer support is critical to women's wellbeing, and should be embraced as a mainstream health promotion strategy by health care providers and community-based health organizations, and funded through Medicaid billing. The Tertulias peer support group model should be embraced as a legitimate, mainstream health promotion strategy, including as a mechanism for funding.