Groups can offer an environment in which you can ventilate your feelings and receive validation from others. The group provides an opportunity for you to talk about things that may have bothered you for a long time, and to receive support from a group of your peers. The Myth of A Unique Weakness. Because many of us carry around our secrets and have difficulty talking to others about them, we develop the sense that we are different from others, we feel alienated, we feel that others won't be able to understand us. Being in a group in which others have had similar experiences can make us feel more human and less alone.
Groups can model constructive coping behavior.
You will learn from others how they resolved situations similar to yours. Groups give you a chance to help yourself by helping others. During the ebb and flow of a group, there will be times when things are going so well for you, that you have more energy available to help others in the group. The group can help you observe and understand old patterns of self-defeating behavior and communication problems that you bring with you. We all deal with these old patterns, and usually we are not aware of how they manifest themselves with others.