self-help group
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self-help group
A group of people who suffer from a similar problem, illness, or difficult life situation and meet regularly to support each other and exchange experiences.
Er fand viel Halt in seiner Selbsthilfegruppe für anonyme Alkoholiker.
He found a lot of support in his self-help group for Alcoholics Anonymous.
The word is a clear compound: 'Selbst' (self) + 'Hilfe' (help) gives 'Selbsthilfe' (self-help), and that is combined with 'Gruppe' (group). So it is literally a group in which people help themselves and each other.
Der Gedanke der Selbsthilfe ist bei der Bewältigung von Problemen sehr wichtig.
The idea of self-help is very important in coping with problems.
To name the topic of the group, German almost always uses the preposition 'für' (for) followed by a noun in the accusative. This makes clear which problem the group is concerned with.
Es gibt eine neue Selbsthilfegruppe für junge Eltern in unserer Stadt.
There is a new self-help group for young parents in our town.
Typical verbs connected with a 'Selbsthilfegruppe' (self-help group) are 'eine Gruppe besuchen' (to attend a group), 'in eine Gruppe gehen' (to go to a group), 'einer Gruppe beitreten' (to join a group), or 'eine Gruppe gründen' (to start a group).
Sie überlegt, einer Selbsthilfegruppe beizutreten, um sich auszutauschen.
She is considering joining a self-help group to exchange experiences.
