It is a tough time, and it could come in all kinds of forms. The disability could be physical or mental. Perhaps they have lost their sight, or maybe they can no longer walk. They are varied and each one somehow stops the afflicted person living their life as they would have wanted to. Hence the name. But when a partner becomes disabled it can have a knock on effect that hits the whole family hard. You may worry about debt due to the lack of another income, the kids may be constantly sad and your partner could spin and slide into a downward spiral of depression. You can avoid all this if you help them in the right way. The following steps may or may not apply to you. Try employing the ones that do to make the whole period of transition easier for your partner.
They’re going to be down, dejected and depressed, but the first thing you need to worry about is the longevity of your family and ensuring they live the life they are used to. You can do this by checking financial support. Consult Karl Osterhout to ensure you get what you can from the state. There is also carer grants available if you need to look after your partner full time due to the issues they face. Ensuring you are okay from a financial standpoint is paramount and needs to be done first.
Depending on the severity of the disability your partner may have difficulty adjusting. This is natural, but if your partner is particularly bad you could consider going for counselling. Specialist counsellors can help you and your partner come to terms with what has happened and get to grips with it. It is a long and arduous road but it can be traversed if you put the work in before hand.
If the issues continue you may want to go to the doctors and seek medical help. This can come in the form of medication for depression or other debilitating illnesses that come with changes to lifestyle.
You may need to take an extended period of time off work to help them get used to their new life. You may even need to quit work altogether if you need to provide a heavy amount of care. In this instance you may want look into getting a different job. Be it part time or work from home. It is a big sacrifice to make especially if you enjoy your work, but it is ever needed. You may even need more help, people to pick the children up from school for example. These are all things you need to consider.
You must try to help your partner back into some kind of work. Again this can be work from home type work. There are all kinds of things people can do, depending on the disability. By doing this they will feel involved again and like they are contributing, meaning their damaged self esteem and image will start to heal. It is all about helping them help themselves, it is the only way they will truly heal.
