How to Offer Mental Health Support to Someone Who Rejects It

Here's what's happening on the HealthyPlace site this week:

• How to Offer Mental Health Support to Someone Who Rejects It
• Start with Small Doses of Mental Health Support
• Most Popular HealthyPlace Articles Shared by Facebook Fans
• From the HealthyPlace Mental Health Blogs

How to Offer Mental Health Support to Someone Who Rejects It

You've tried to offer mental health support to a loved one or family member, but they keep rejecting it. Now what do you do?

Why Would Someone Reject Mental Health Support?

When someone is going through a mental health struggle, he or she may feel embarrassed or insecure about their battle. Many people who are newly diagnosed with a mental illness, or are dealing with new moods and emotions, may grow angry when others try to show mental health support (Mental Illness and Anger). It is absolutely normal for the struggling individual to close others out, but sometimes, loved ones may feel helpless because they don't know how to reach that person to show support (Isolation: A Double-Edged Sword For The Mentally Ill).

Start with Small Doses of Mental Health Support

You do not want to overwhelm someone with support and advice if they are not ready to embrace it yet. Instead, find small, non-intrusive ways to show them you care. You can do this in ways that are not obviously focused on the mental illness at hand.

1. Plan a Relaxing Activity. By planning a day or an activity to do with the person struggling, the individual will be able to step away from their frustrations and focus on something else. Make sure the activity is relaxing, calming and, of course, fun for everyone involved.
2. Buy a Helpful Book or Movie. When you purchase a book or movie with a positive message or involves a character similar to the person you know, that person will be able to take the positive message without having to talk about his or her own struggles.
3. Mail a Fun Care Package. In a day of constant email and messaging, getting actual mail can be extremely exciting. Send your loved one a package filled with fun ways to de-stress not involving their mental illness in any way. You can easily find low-cost items that will brighten your loved one's day and remind them to keep their chin up.

One final note - and this may be the most significant insight I can share with you - while you may want to talk with the person about their mental illness, they may not be ready to or feel like it, or they may not want to discuss it with you. This can be downright frustrating and angering. That's why you may want to consider a therapist for yourself. You'll have someone to share your feelings with and a professional who can provide some guidance.

Articles on Supporting Loved Ones with a Mental Illness

• Helping a Depressed Friend
• Supporting Someone with Bipolar Disorder: For Family and Friends
• Eating Disorders: A Guide for Parents and Loved Ones
• Help a Loved One with Anxiety

Your Thoughts

Today's Question: What effective ways have you found to support a family member or loved one with mental illness? We invite you to participate by commenting and sharing your feelings, experiences and knowledge on the HealthyPlace Facebook page.

Most Popular HealthyPlace Articles Shared by Facebook Fans

Here are the top 3 mental health articles HealthyPlace Facebook fans are recommending you read:

1. Overcoming Binge Eating Disorder and the Dangers of Dieting
2. Delusional Bipolar Depression More Common Than We Think?
3. Fear of Losing Someone You Love

If you're not already, I hope you'll join us/like us on Facebook too. There are a lot of wonderful, supportive people there.

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From the HealthyPlace Mental Health Blogs

On all our blogs, your comments and observations are welcomed.

• Why Treatment for Trauma is So Important for Children (Mental Health Treatment Circle Blog)
• The News Can Trigger Depression and Make Your Own Luck to Defeat Depression-Related Anxiety (Coping with Depression Blog)
• Five Ways to Relieve Anxiety You’ve Never Thought Of and Anxiety Is a Narcissist (Anxiety-Schmanxiety Blog)
• “Crying Out” Bipolar Depression (Breaking Bipolar Blog)
• BDSM and Borderline (More Than Borderline Blog)
• Mental Illness Lies Some Christians Believe and Peer Support Crucial to Mental Health Recovery (Recovering From Mental Illness Blog)
• How to Find A Good PTSD Therapist (Trauma! A PTSD Blog)
• Learn How to Control Your Emotions and Feel Confident and Stop Putting Yourself Down and Build Self-Esteem (Building Self-Esteem Blog)
• Facing Mental Health Stigma While Traveling (Surviving Mental Health Stigma Blog)
• PTSD Rates in Veterans High, But Not in All Groups (Understanding Combat PTSD)
• When Binge Eating Disorder Causes Weight Gain (Binge Eating Recovery Blog)
• The Effects of Verbal Abuse and How They Hurt Me (Verbal Abuse and Relationships Blog)
• Cover Stories for Self-Harm Scars (Speaking Out About Self-Injury Blog)
• 6 Tips on How to Find a Great Mental Health Counselor (Your Mental Health Blog)
• Ways You Can Manage Your Anxiety Disorder Exhaustion (Treating Anxiety Blog)
• Mood Disorders in Teens Is Not Normal Moodiness (Life with Bob)
• Dissociation with Anxiety Symptoms and Panic Attacks (Dissociative Living Blog)
• Is It A Diet or An Eating Disorder? (Surviving ED Blog)
• Anorexia: A New Form of Control (Getting Through Tough Times Blog)
• Rejection Over Being Queer and Depression (The Life: LGBT Mental Health Blog)
• Are E-cigarettes and Vaping Harmful? and Recreational Marijuana Use May Correlate to Heroin Addiction (Debunking Addiction Blog)
• Schizoaffective Disorder and Spirituality and Homeless With Schizophrenia (Creative Schizophrenia Blog)

Feel free to share your thoughts and comments at the bottom of any blog post. And visit the mental health blogs homepage for the latest posts.

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That's it for now. If you know of anyone who can benefit from this newsletter or the HealthyPlace.com site, I hope you'll pass this on to them. You can also share the newsletter on any social network you belong to or, by clicking the links below, get updates throughout the week:

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