AD | Collaborative post
Dealing with an injury can be overwhelming. Having the help and support from family members comes a long way. It plays an integral role in recovery and maintaining a positive mindset after an injury. An injury can create a new reality in someone’s life. Any help one gets is always welcome. However, sometimes friends and family members may be unsure how to extend a helping hand or be there emotionally. This guide gives a few things you can do to support a friend or family member that has suffered an injury. Here are some tips:
Spend time together
An injury can impact someone’s ability to perform their daily tasks. They may not be able to go to their work or interact with people as they used to before the injury. That reality can feel catastrophic. A loved one recovering from injury may feel lonely or like the world is moving on without them. Try to make time to spend with them at home or the hospital. They will feel less alone, encouraging them to maintain a positive mindset as they get better.
Offer emotional support
Some injuries can be life-altering. That can take a toll on someone’s emotional well-being. The physical aftermath is not the only thing someone recovering from an injury has to deal with every day. They have to deal with the emotional and psychological consequences of the incident. Offer emotional care for your family member recovering from an injury. Listen to their concerns and allow them to express their frustrations and disappointments. Try to encourage them to maintain a positive outlook. Offering a safe space where they are allowed to heal at their pace while receiving emotional and psychological support will promote faster healing.
Be realistic
Providing emotional support does not mean that you have to give unrealistic hopes to a loved one recovering after an injury. Try to resist the urge to offer false optimism. It does nothing but makes them feel frustrated when their body does not meet those unrealistic expectations of healing.
Advise them to hire a lawyer
Your loved ones will focus on healing better when not worrying about medical expenses. If the injury happened because of negligent actions by another party, they are liable to file a legal claim. Advise your loved one to seek legal help. It is unfair that the negligent party goes scott-free while your loved one has to deal with emotional, psychological, and physical repercussions. Try to advise them to search for a personal injury lawyer to help them get justice and financial compensation. The attorney can also help in dealing with insurance companies and any other parties involved. They will also shed some light on how to handle every step of the way.
Encourage healthy living
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle goes a long way toward faster healing. Try to encourage your loved one to live a healthy life even when recovering from the injury. Ask the doctors to recommend exercises or activities that are safe to do in the recovery phase. Most people let their health go when they are sick. That only makes things worse. It becomes more challenging for the body to get better. Encourage your loved one to eat healthily and cut down on processed foods. The body needs those nutrients to heal itself. Also, advise them to get enough sleep. Maintaining healthy habits helps the healing process significantly.
Offer to help with household chores
Your loved one needs uninterrupted time to heal from the injury and focus on healing without worrying about house duties. Lighten the burden for them by offering help with household tasks. Ask them what they need the most help with and come through for them. The mere act of asking makes them feel like they have emotional support. They feel like you care about them hence boosting their morale. Some of the tasks you can help with are, cooking food for their family, fetching groceries and other errands, cleaning, doing laundry, caring for their pets, etc. Sometimes, the injury could render them unable to perform the most basic tasks like taking a shower or even walking. Offer to help with those tasks. Also, since the injury may affect their ability to do things with their kids, offer help by arranging pay dates and scheduling activities. However, some people may not appreciate having someone overstep boundaries to give personal assistance. Be sure to have a conversation with your loved ones to know what tasks they do not mind you helping.
Wrapping up
Dealing with an injury is no easy feat. However, one thing that makes everything more bearable is knowing that you have the support of your family and friends. Getting assistance makes the journey less lonely.