Every family goes through hard times and during these moments; they’re likely to need your support the most. Whether it’s your partner, children, siblings or extended family, there are ways that you can show them the love and support they need to make the difficult times a little easier. It could mean making them a cup of tea every morning, sending them motivational quotes, or letting them know that you’re there to help with anything they need. In case you and your family are going through a difficult time at the moment, this article is going to explore a few ways that you can be there for them.
Be There to Listen
You’d be surprised at how much good a listening ear could do for someone going through a difficult time. For this reason, listening to a family member when they’re facing challenges should be one of the first things that you do. One of several ways to be a good listener is to first know your barriers. Thismeans knowing when expressing sympathy or offering unsolicited advice is appropriate and not talking about your personal experiences as it can sometimes make it feellike you’re making about you instead of them. In addition to this, you should also try to avoid trying to spin their situation into a positive one too soon. Thisis because sometimes they may need you to be compassionate and understand how they’re feeling atthat moment. You should also try giving them time and avoid explaining things away, especially if they’re upset.
Help Them Find Solutions
As mentioned above, it isn’t always wise to offer unsolicited advice to someone going through a difficult time. However, if they ask or you feel it’s appropriate to, you should help them look for solutions to whatever challenges they’re facing. Thiscould mean suggesting they get counseling if they’re battling depression, providing them with a list of prospective rehab centers if they’re struggling with drug and alcohol addictions, or finding financial solutions for them if they’re having money issues. Whatever the case, try and work together with them to help find practical solutions to whatever it is that they’re going through.
Offer Your Time
Time is an invaluable gift that can often go a long way. For this reason, it may prove to be an effective way to be there for your family members during difficult times. Some ways to offer your time include helping them run errands such as buying groceries or paying bills. You could also offer to cook them meals and buy them gifts that may help them or cheer them up. If it’s for a spouseor partner, some ways to offer your time and show them you care are cooking them a healthy meal, offering to help with cleaning, offering to look after the kids, sothey get alone time, planning a trip away, or buying them tickets to the cinema.
Your familyshould be some of the few people that will be there for you no matter what. Thismeans that during tough times especially, you should be able to count on each other and know you can find comfort and a friend in each other. Every person needs are different during hard times, but by finding out what your loved one needs, you should be better able to help them through.
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