{"id":1292,"date":"2023-09-16T16:12:32","date_gmt":"2023-09-16T15:12:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/?p=1292"},"modified":"2023-09-16T19:33:33","modified_gmt":"2023-09-16T18:33:33","slug":"how-to-deal-with-mental-illness-as-a-couple","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/how-to-deal-with-mental-illness-as-a-couple\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Deal with Mental Illness as a Couple"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Mental illness. <\/p>\n<p>Those two words are enough to strike fear into the hearts of both the sufferer and their partner.<\/p>\n<p>But it doesn&#8217;t have to be that way.<\/p>\n<p>With understanding, good communication, and access to professional support, mental illness doesn&#8217;t have to mean the end of love.<\/p>\n<p>In this post, you&#8217;ll discover:<br \/>\n<!--more--><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Why mental illness impacts relationships<\/li>\n<li>What you can do to support your partner  <\/li>\n<li>When to seek professional help<\/li>\n<li>How to look after yourself<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Why Mental Illness Impacts Relationships<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>When one person in a relationship experiences mental illness it invariably impacts the other.<\/p>\n<p>Why? <\/p>\n<p>Because when you love someone and they&#8217;re suffering, you suffer too.  <\/p>\n<p>Their pain becomes your pain.<\/p>\n<p>You desperately want to help them, but nothing you do seems to make any difference.<\/p>\n<p>In fact, it often makes things worse and leads to&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/is-your-relationship-stuck-in-a-negative-cycle\/\">Negative cycles<\/a> <\/p>\n<p>Like the chap who stopped initiating sex with his wife, because her lack of desire confirmed his belief she no longer loved him.<\/p>\n<p>But he never asked her what was going on.<\/p>\n<p>He never communicated his fears. <\/p>\n<p>So she had no idea this was happening, which just confirmed in his mind she didn&#8217;t care.<\/p>\n<p>And so the negative cycle spun faster.<\/p>\n<p>To break negative cycles, you need <a href=\"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/communication-problems-why-hok-is-the-solution\/\">HOK<\/a> (Honest, Open and most importantly Kind) communication.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What You Can Do to Support Your Partner<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>First and foremost, educate yourself on your partner&#8217;s condition.<\/p>\n<p>Understand what they\u2019re going through. <\/p>\n<p>Let them know you\u2019re there for them.<\/p>\n<p>Be patient, be kind, be loving. <\/p>\n<p>Create a safe space for them to open up. <\/p>\n<p>Never judge, criticise or belittle them.<\/p>\n<p>And don&#8217;t take their moods personally.<\/p>\n<p>Your partner can&#8217;t help the way they feel, but you can help them heal.<\/p>\n<p>Here are some additional tips:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Go with them to doctor visits and therapy. Be an active part of their treatment team.<\/li>\n<li>Help them adhere to medication routines. Mental illness is often physiological &#8211; meds can help!<\/li>\n<li>Don&#8217;t try to &#8220;fix&#8221; them. Just listen and empathise. You\u2019re their partner, not their doctor.<\/li>\n<li>Encourage them to join a support group, either locally or online. Connecting with others who understand their struggle can be hugely helpful. <\/li>\n<li>Educate yourself on their condition by reading, researching online, or talking to professionals. The more you understand, the better you can support them.<br \/>\nBe patient during the bad times, and celebrate the good times. Recovery isn&#8217;t linear be their rock through it all.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>When to Seek Professional Help<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>If your partner talks about suicide or self-harm, seek help immediately. <\/p>\n<p>Contact their doctor, call emergency services, or take them to A&#038;E.<\/p>\n<p>Likewise, if their condition deteriorates rapidly or they are unable to function.<\/p>\n<p>Don&#8217;t try to handle serious mental illness alone. <\/p>\n<p>As a couple, you can work with a professional to learn tools and techniques to communicate openly, break negative cycles and strengthen your relationship.<\/p>\n<p>Signs it&#8217;s time to seek professional help:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Talk of suicide or self-harm<\/li>\n<li>Rapid deterioration <\/li>\n<li>Unable to care for self or fulfil daily responsibilities<\/li>\n<li>Experiencing hallucinations or detachment from reality<\/li>\n<li>Major changes in sleep, appetite or mood<\/li>\n<li>Expressions of hopelessness or constant thoughts of death<\/li>\n<li>Withdrawing from loved ones and isolating themselves<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you notice any of the above, don&#8217;t delay &#8211;  seek professional support right away.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How to Look After Yourself<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Supporting a partner with mental illness can take a toll on your own well-being. <\/p>\n<p>That&#8217;s why you must look after yourself.<\/p>\n<p>Make time for self-care. Do things you enjoy. <\/p>\n<p>Seek support from family, friends or your own counsellor.<\/p>\n<p>And never feel guilty for having needs of your own.<\/p>\n<p>Protect your energy so you can be fully there for your partner.<\/p>\n<p>Self-care tips:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Make time each day for an activity you enjoy &#8211; read a book, take a bath, go for a walk. <\/li>\n<li>Set healthy boundaries &#8211; be supportive but don&#8217;t become your partner&#8217;s caretaker.<\/li>\n<li>Confide in trusted friends and family. Don&#8217;t isolate yourself. <\/li>\n<li>Consider your own counselling to process challenges. You need support too!<\/li>\n<li>Eat healthy, exercise, and get good sleep &#8211; your health impacts your ability to help.<\/li>\n<li>Join a local caregivers support group. Connecting with others who understand is huge.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Mental illness presents challenges for any couple. <\/p>\n<p>But together, with compassion, communication and professional support, you can weather the storm.<\/p>\n<p>Your relationship can grow even stronger.<\/p>\n<p>If you need help, <a href=\"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/contact-marcus\/\">don&#8217;t hesitate to reach out.<\/a> <\/p>\n<p>Until next time, take care of yourselves and each other! <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mental illness. Those two words are enough to strike fear into the hearts of both the sufferer and their partner. But it doesn&#8217;t have to be that way. With understanding, good communication, and access to professional support, mental illness doesn&#8217;t have to mean the end of love. In this post, you&#8217;ll discover:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1303,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1292"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1292"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1292\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1294,"href":"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1292\/revisions\/1294"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1303"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1292"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1292"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/southdevoncouplestherapy.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1292"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}