How to begin?

[Blondie Girl]

My college aged daughter has BPD. She wound up in the psych ward a few months back, and now she's getting the help she needs. That experience was so stressful for me, and then I became very depressed. She told me early on that her therapist had information about a support group for families. I asked her to get me the info a couple of times, but she hasn't. Meanwhile, I feel so alone and I don't know how to help her or myself. Sometimes when things are really tough I feel like I can't do anything for either of us let alone anyone else. That's how I ended up here, but I really don't know how to begin.

Our objective is to better understand the struggles our child faces and to learn the skills to improve our relationship and provide a supportive environment and also improve on our own emotional responses, attitudes and effectiveness as a family leaders

[Huat]

Hi there Blondie Girl

Not to worry about how to begin...you have done great!

Hopefully you have been "surfing" through the other posts here.  If you have, I am sure you have seen stories similar to yours.  You name it...always someone else who can put up their hand and say..."Me, too!"

Keep asking that therapist about information on the support group for families.  Jump at anything that will help keep you above water.

With that said, hope you find it helpful to continue on here.  I do believe in support groups, have attended a few over the years.  A couple of the things I like about being here is the fact I do not have to wait my turn...I am not interrupted.  Now, that is not to say you can't belong to both.

Good to read that your daughter is now "getting the help she needs."  It will be a life-long journey for her, for you, for her family/friends.  She will have to work on continuing to put into practice what she learns.   You and the rest in her circle-of-life will have to know how to continue to support her.

We learn from each other here.  Hope you keep sharing.  Let us know what is working and what doesn't seem to be working.

Here is to brighter days ahead.  Glad you found us.

Huat

[DriftlessRider]

Look up NAMI online and see if they have an active chapter nearby and see if they have support groups.

You can also call the behavioral health unit of a local hospital and ask to speak to a nurse. Ask him/her if they know about any support groups for family members of the mentally ill. The nurse will be glad you called.

You can also call any local counseling center and ask the same thing.

And of course, you can get an appointment with a therapist for yourself. Probably in addition to a support group.

I remember when my daughter called from the ER the first time telling us she was getting committed for a few days. It was so overwhelming, I didn't know what was going on. It was like getting hit by a ocean wave, and I had no way to swim because I was tumbling under the water.

The support and advice I got in my support group helped me immediately. It did not fix anything, and I am still overwhelmed a lot, but it helped a lot too. You're not alone, there are more people struggling with this that you might imagine. It's a great sign you are looking to get that support yourself.