Shoshana advises anybody with suicidal thoughts to find a source of help.
Written testimony
Find a source of help. Psychiatry is good except that often there’s a wait time. You might, if you’re expressing a suicide concern, go to your doctor and perhaps you can get into see a professional sooner because of that. Don’t be scared to say that you’re, you know—if you’ve got a good doctor they will react. Find someone who understands it. Find someone who’s been there, done that. Again, probably through a support group or through this website you can find someone possibly who’s been in that situation. But don’t let it go long like my situation with feeling like I was drowning. Don’t let it go that far when you’re only hanging on by two strings. Get help when you recognize it and when you see it, and you know that there’s a problem and you‘re scared. Get, get some sort of help somewhere. Go to your doctor, go somewhere and get some help. Hopefully they can connect you with the right places, because it’s too hard when you’re getting too deep. But find some source. Now they have the Internet; you could find some sort of source. Talk to people that maybe know someone else that know someone else. But it requires a little bit of work, and a little bit of mental preparation, if you’re not too far where you can get to that point to get help. Like, don’t wait; get help right away, before it goes to a suicidal point or something like that.
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- Interaction with professionals -ShoshanaShoshana disagreed with the diagnosis her husbands’ physician had given him, but later found out why the doctor had been cautious about being straightforward.
- Interaction with professionals -ShoshanaShoshana disagreed with the diagnosis her husbands’ physician had given him, but later found out why the doctor had been cautious about being straightforward.
- Resources -ShoshanaShoshana has maintained friendships with two other women who attended the support group.
- Effects of care recipients’ behaviour -ShoshanaShoshana’s husband has some behavioural issues and can be critical of her in public.
- Support from family and friends -ShoshanaThe support from Shoshana’s family-in-law was very poor, but she did receive great support from her sister.
- Social impact and lifestyle changes -ShoshanaShoshana is nervous about pursuing new friendships because her husband’s temperament has changed with his condition. She is worried about how others will perceive him.
- Providing support -ShoshanaFor Shoshana, caregiving is more about being a memory bank and a daily calendar.
- Legal issues -ShoshanaAfter her husband was mentally incapacitated, Shoshana wondered who could make decisions about her healthcare, should the need arise.
- Impact on health -ShoshanaShoshana advises anybody with suicidal thoughts to find a source of help.
- Advice for friends and family -ShoshanaShoshana suggests that for social events, people should always invite both the caregiver and care recipient; let them decide whether or not they are able to participate.