How to Really Support a Loved One Who ’s Struggling with Their Mental Illness

You know your friend is struggling with depression or anxiety or some other mental health issue, but you don’t know what to say. You feel like anything you think about saying just sounds stupid and patronizing. You also aren’t sure what to do. After all, you don’t want to intrude. You don’t want to be pushy, or bulldoze over their privacy. Or you already feel overwhelmed by something difficult in your own life. Still you want to help. You just wonder, How? Psychotherapist Colleen Mullen, Psy.D, LMFT, noted that many of us worry that we’ll just make the other person more upset or uncomfortable by revealing that we know something’s wrong. Or maybe we don’t realize the extent of their pain. “I’ve seen many times how family members said in reflection, ‘I thought they were just going through something’ or ‘I didn’t think they were that depressed,’” said Mullen, founder of the Coaching Through Chaos private practice and podcast in San Diego. Before her bipolar II disorder diagnosis, Julie Kraft also might’ve distanced herself from friends with mental illness—“not out of not caring, but rather, out of not knowing how to care. My silence would have only been a result of being terrified of saying or doing the wrong thing.” However, there are many ways we can help—small ways that can be significantly helpful and supportive. For Fiona Thomas, a writer who has depression and anxiety, this looks like a loved one ordering takeout and making her a c...
Source: Psych Central - Category: Psychiatry Authors: Tags: Caregivers Disabilities Disorders Family General Relationships & Love Self-Help Anxiety Bipolar Disorder Compassion Depression Empathy Friends loved ones Mental Health mental health struggles Mental Illness support Source Type: news