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Saturday, 8 September 2018

The Reality Of Coping With Mental Illness In The Family

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By Jeffrey Ross


Mental illness has always been very relevant. However, it was a subject that was not talked about in the past. For example, soldiers would come back from the battlefield and were mostly suffering from PTSD, but simply had to get on with their lives. Coping with mental illness in the family as well is also something that one needs to be able to talk about.

This may vary from one person to the next. Some people will display more physical symptoms which can include a change in mood, the loss of appetite, substance abuse and the inability to socialize. Other people will be emotionally affected. This is sometimes worse. Even with medication it can be erratic because it means that the family won't know what to expect.

It is difficult when their spouse or child continues to blame them or makes them feel guilty. It is not easy to tell yourself that this is all about the disorder, especially when you are more of a sensitive person. It is particularly difficult for the parent because one will think they have done something wrong somewhere along the line.

It is not only the individual that needs guidance, but also the family members. In addition to this, it is not just the spouse, but also the kids and the siblings or close friends and extended family who are close to the individual. Without this sort of guidance, the family can begin to drift apart. They will begin to avoid one another and this need not happen.

Sometimes, family members just don't know enough about the illness. The first thing that they think about is to send the individual to a home. Finding out more about the illness is the first step that one should take. A specialized therapist will be able to help here. Sometimes, people are not on medication. They will have serious depression, so of course, they are going to lie in bed all day in a catatonic state.

They will see mom or dad sleeping all day or they will see that they have become angry all of a sudden and begin to think that they have done something wrong. Kids will become ashamed of themselves. The whole family will need to receive therapy and openly discuss what they are feeling instead of bottling this up inside.

Children go through a wide range of problems as well. It doesn't just relate to adults. The secret is to recognize signs and symptoms in the early stages so that one can treat this early on. Parents need to know how to deal with this in the early stages. Teenagers often go through a lot of stress and anxiety and this leads to other disorders. It is something to watch out for.

Parents are often hurt the most. They may be feeling guilty or they may blame themselves. A lot of parents keep on asking themselves where they went wrong. But so often, this is simply an illness just like anything else in life that crops up. One shouldn't feel bad about this, no matter how old the child is. It is important simply to offer support, which comes in the form of compassion and understanding.




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