How to support your loved one with PTSD

 Living strategies on how to support a loved one with PTSD



Key Takeaways:

  • PTSD’s effects on the individual can be significant, and everyone has a unique PTSD experience.
  • It is important to communicate with your loved one by arranging a time to meet. Calling or texting can also be helpful.
  • Being a good listener for your loved one will go highly appreciated.
  • Understanding the disorder and what it entails can help support your loved one. Education will help you keep things in perspective. As a lot of my family wish they knew this type of information when my first sibling committed suicide, so learn this information today.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a disorder that develops in some people who have experienced a shocking, scary, or dangerous event. 

When I was diagnosed with PTSD after experiencing a traumatic events more than once I assumed I had a general understanding of PTSD and what the mental disorder entails. I found it especially challenging to support others who didn’t want help.  

It can be very hard to see a loved one you deeply care about experience PTSD. Effectively supporting them while understanding the disorder can be overwhelming and difficult. Their pain can be your pain, and naturally we want to do as much as possible to encourage a supportive and positive recovery.  

Characterized by a psychological reaction to witnessing or experiencing a traumatic or shocking event, PTSD’s effects on the individual can be significant, and everyone has a unique PTSD experience. If you know someone with PTSD it goes without saying that being supportive is vital. Interpreting how to show compassion and care can be hard to navigate while being mindful of emotional boundaries. During my experience, I found these strategies useful. 

Show up when you can. I know how hard it is living away from your loved one with PTSD or having work and study commitments. So, communicate with them, and agree on a day and time when you are both available to spend some time together. It is important to check in with them; even texting, calling, or video calling them can be helpful. Communication with your loved one with PTSD should include positive affirmations and reassurance. I know this as I teach cognitive behavioural therapy.
This allows your loved one to feel more comfortable sharing with you – and that may be important for their recovery.  
Be a good listener.
Sometimes individuals with PTSD may need to repeatedly discuss their traumatic event. It’s important to understand that this is part of the healing process. Being a good listener for your loved one will go highly appreciated. You don’t need to give advice, instead, listen to what they are saying and be attentive. Be aware that if they are discussing with you the traumatic event, it may be hard to hear. Practising some self-care is important after discussing stressful topics and is a positive way to ground yourself.  
Try to learn a better understanding of PTSD

Understanding the disorder and what it entails can help support your loved one. Education will help you keep things in perspective. Education on the disorder will build a foundation of trust between yourself and your loved one, allowing for enhanced communication and insight into what they are going through. An insight into how PTSD works can even prepare you for possible symptoms this person may show and how to support them through their recovery. Knowledge can be powerful for supporting them.  

 I learnt that effectively communicating with other family members and getting them to listen.

And educating myself more on PTSD aided in my ability to support others and myself through the recovery journey. While supporting your loved one with PTSD, know that you are not helpless. You won’t always have the answers, in fact, you don’t need answers at all, and that is okay. I found that even the smallest acts of support are helpful. As a life coach it’s important to remember to that these small things matter.

Remember to be patient and remember that your loved one cannot simply erase their trauma, but they can reduce the impact it has on them.  it took me years to overcome a traumatic events I’ve been through. Be kind to yourself.



By Lori from lifesuccessnz xx

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

8 universal truths to inner peace

Image
 Truths to inner peace  We all seek inner peace: the calm, clarity, and contentment that comes from falling into a harmonious balance with our internal self. But despite how essential inner peace is in finding true happiness, many of us don’t know where to start on this journey of personal growth and transformation. In today’s hectic and ever-changing world, inner peace may seem like a foreign concept, but cultivating it doesn't require huge life changes like moving to Bali. Rather, finding peace within ourselves is more of an individual journey to be embraced and explored. Overview The 8 universal truths for inner peace include: Our imagination often causes us more suffering than reality does; We are not free if we cannot control ourselves; Everyone must choose one of two pains: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret; when we really don’t need to. No matter how anxious we may be, it won't change the course of events that are bound to happen; we got to change how  W...
Read more

Unlocking your full potential: A guide to self-improvement

Image
Unlock your full potential: self improvement  Personal development is any activity that makes you a better person. Its goal is to give you more confidence and make you a happier, more satisfied individual. It concerns itself with improving awareness, honing talents, developing emotional intelligence and building your appreciation of yourself and all of your attributes. As with any significant undertaking, but especially one that can be as life-changing as personal development, it’s worth taking a deep look at why it is undertaken, or what your motivation should be before taking it on.  Motivation is the fuel that will keep you going as you discover and create the best version of yourself. It’s intrinsically related to purpose, because if you don’t know your purpose in life, you can hardly know what your destination should be and what motivations you need in order to get there. By reminding yourself of what your purpose or bottom line is, you are more likely to have the self-mo...
Read more

Life lessons

Image
  One of the hardest things about improving your life is remembering to practice what you’ve learned in a moment of temptation, frustration, or hardship. Anyone can follow a strategy as they read about it, but remembering to stick with it in the real world is tough. Stories help with that. An engaging story sticks with you in a way that a research finding often can’t. While JamesClear.com promotes science-backed ideas, we don’t shun stories and lessons based on real life. This page collects life lessons from my own life as well as from the lives of artists, creators, and innovators.  Let’s dive in. Lessons on Living a Meaningful Life Not saying goodbye to dying family member . - I’ve come across some people that don’t want to say goodbye to their family member when that person has died Or they don’t know how to face the persons death. From My own experience I’ve had to face it with courage and know that I did what I had to do regardless of the fact my half siblings didn’t...
Read more