Last week, I posted a question on my Instagram story asking, “how can people help you on hard days?” I was blown away by the quality and quantity of the responses I received. One thing I’ve learned from my own chronic illness journey is that often, the most effective forms of support are not intuitive.
The people who love you the most might feel their hearts cracking wide open as they watch you suffer on a hard day, but they probably find themselves at a loss as to what they can actually do to help ease some of that pain.
It can be unrealistic (and sometimes downright impossible) to brainstorm or to even articulate your needs in your hardest moments. This compounds the confusion and frustration for both you and the people by your side, as you struggle for relief and they struggle to find a way to help.
One thing my support squad and I have learned over the years is that planning ahead for those tough days is crucial.
In order to help you develop or add to your “Flare Day Support Toolbox,” I want to share some of the ideas our community suggested and some of my own personal favorites.
I’ve discussed many of these with my #clinicalcopilots so they know what they can do to support me on the inevitable tough, chronic illness days. I’ve found my support squad is immensely appreciative when I can name concrete ways that they can help me, and I hope this list gives you and yours some new ideas.
Some of the main themes that came up over and over again included helping with food (this might have been number one), open-hearted listening and check-ins (via text/phone/quick visit) to remind us we are not forgotten and we are not alone.
Providing quality support doesn’t always take a lot of time or effort. Strategic, well-executed and minimal actions can actually have a profound impact and can bring relief and comfort to someone stuck at home in a world of hurt.
So, scroll away. Below are some great ideas (from all of you) about what other people can do to make your day easier when you are having a flare. I encourage you to come up with your own list (of those things that will help you the most) and to share that list with your own crew of clinical co-pilots.
50 Ways to Support Someone You Love on a Hard Day:
1. Ask me what errands need to be done and then help me by doing one for me.
To read support ideas 2-50, go to the following link: https://themighty.com/2019/11/how-to-help-bad-chronic-pain-flare-up/?utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=in-story-related-link
TAGS: chronic illness, chronic pain, flare up, Flare Day Support Toolbox
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