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Family skills training
The main aim of the programme is to enhance skills and knowledge in how we communicate with people with a personality disorder or mental health problems.
If we ignore the needs and skills of the family member or carer then we are missing a key domain in the triangle of care. Interventions in this area could be extremely cost effective.
How can family skills interventions help?
For many the crisis presentation is triggered by relationship break downs. It is not uncommon for family, friends, and carers to frequently feel there is nothing they can do when a psychiatric admission or more input is needed.
In some cases this may be true but at other times it can be that a lack of understanding and skills at managing people in distress can be facilitating the problem.
What now?
A referral form will be completed and an assessment process will take place to measure the benefits of skills enhanced training to reduce carer burden.
You will be asked to complete a questionnaire, pre training, post training, and then a follow up approximately three months later to assess whether it has made a difference to you, or the person you care for.
What next?
Once you have completed all sessions of training, you will then eligible to attend a peer support group for a period of approximately six months.
These will be fortnightly sessions to provide ongoing support and supervision. The group will consist of problem solving techniques, solution focussed initiatives.
What is peer support?
Peer support is
“offering and receiving help, based on shared understanding, respect and mutual empowerment between people in similar situations".
Why have peer support?
There is a building evidence base that training delivered by people who understand the problem enhances the effectiveness of the interventions.
To ensure this, the training and supervision should be provided by a carer with life long experience of caring for a person with mental health difficulties and frequent crisis behaviour.
Family Skills
Improving relationships
Provide skills to help reduce interpersonal chaos, and rebuild relationship difficulties.
Validation
These skills help to reduce one’s own dysregulation (self validation) and improve relationships (validating others).
Coping with emotions
Family members are taught new ways to think about, and understand emotions, and new strategies for managing them.
Managing stressful situations
These skills include many strategies for surviving crises, accepting reality, and tolerating distress in order to allow natural change.
What help can I expect from services?
Once your assessment has been carried out, you will be offered two initial skills workshops depending on the diagnosis of the person you are caring for; so for personality disorder you would attend CRISPS (carers require information to support personality symptoms).
For all other mental health diagnosis you will be offered two sessions called Carers Mental Health Awareness.
You will then be offered further enhanced skills based workshops to help support people whom have difficulties with managing relationships, and emotions more effectively.
These will involve six three hour training sessions delivered by a carer with lived experience and a mental health practitioner.
Covering a number of topics
- Family skills
- Improving relationship
- Validation (two sessions
- Coping with emotion
- Managing stressful situations
Recommended reading
Understanding and treating borderline personality disorder – A guide for professionals and families
(Gunderson, Hoffman)
The borderline personality disorder survival guide
(Chapman, Gratz)
Stop Walking on Eggshells
(Masons/Kreger)
Reinventing your life
(Young, Klosko)
Living with Schizophrenia
(Dr Neel Burton/ Dr Phil Davison)
The Bipolar Disorder Survival Guide
(David J Miklowitz)
Bipolar Disorder The Ultimate Guide
(Sarah Owen/Amanda Saunders)
Our patients matter
Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust listens and responds to patients and their carers to help improve the services we deliver.
If you have any comments,compliments or concerns you can speak with a member of staff or contact our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) and Complaints Team.
Telephone: 0151 471 2377
Freephone: 0800 328 2941
Email: palsandcomplaints@merseycare.nhs.uk
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