Over the last year I have been witness to a
situation that has become increasingly difficult for a member of my family.
As I live in another country and cannot be
around all the time, I have tried to visit as often as possible and also
offered support and skyped regularly to help this person out with their
situation.
The issue at hand is mental illness,
specifically anxiety… Mental illness is a very difficult type of illness, you can’t
see it, there is no specific recovery time (if at all) and it is very hard to
cope with for the person who has to live with the affected person every day.
This family member, who is now for all
intents and purposes the primary care giver, is not at all comfortable with the
idea of mental illness and unfortunately comes from a generation where this
sort of thing was ignored, or avoided at all costs. It was usually something
that was hidden within the family or the person would even be put into an institution!
When someone comes from such an era as
this, it is unlikely that they will be in any way prepared to deal with this
sort of illness, nor will they have the tools to be able to cope on a day to
day basis.
Recently my family member went to a support
group, she thought that she may be able to get the support she needed from
people that understood her. Unfortunately this was not the case and most people
there, didn’t have the same problems she did! Unfortunately in the UK it is very
difficult to find these sorts of groups, and although they have come a long way
with support groups, they still do not cater for the carers of mentally ill
patients properly.
So…. I it got me thinking about what it is
that she may be able to do, to help her to get through the toughest times of
the week, day or even hour sometimes!
Of course I realised that affirmations and
positivity would definitely be a good start, so I suggested several
affirmations that she may want to try out for a week and see if that changed
the way she felt in any way.
- I am appreciated
- I am in control
- I love myself therefore when I make a mistake I forgive myself
- I am thankful to still have ______ in my life
- I love ________ therefore, every day I am learning new ways of looking at his/her behaviours
- I am not afraid to ask for help
- I love myself, therefore I treat myself to _______
- I accept that there will be bad days and that I can cope with them
- I can cope with anything that is thrown at me
Being a carer is a thankless job, and at
times it can just be so overwhelming that it doesn’t feel like there is a point
to it anymore. Positive self-talk and self-care can actually alter the way that
people think and feel in general, helping them to navigate through the bad
times in order to enjoy the good, and also recognise the good easier.
Once these short and sweet sentences become
a part of a daily routine, the sense of well-being and accomplishment will be
increased! And care-givers will have the energy to go on, know when to take a
break and be able to deal with life as a carer more calmly and happily.
My family member is seeing some benefits
from these affirmations already, and although a complete non-believer in this
type of self-help, she really is giving it a go to see what changes can be made
in her life.
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Repeat after me: “I’m financially free, dollars want me!”
Sue Turner – Personal Assistant
The Prosperity Communityhttp://theprosperitycommunity.com/
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