How should I best approach conversations with my essential worker?
So your essential healthcare loved one has opened up the space for you all to talk about what they experienced. And they mention that they might want to talk about it but you’re not really sure of the best way to broach it. I recommend you just ask them: “Do you want to talk about your experience while you were fighting COVID-19 as an essential worker?” You might also ask them about their feelings: “How are you feeling, and are there some ways that I can better support you? What would be helpful?” You might also invite them to set a boundary with you. So it’s saying something like, “If I ask you something you don’t want to discuss, please tell me.” So that gives them the invitation to keep themselves psychologically and emotionally healthy as they continue to do essential work in the fight against COVID-19.
What should I do if they say something that concerns me?
So now you’ve done a really great job as a loved one of an essential worker of opening up the conversation. And say, as they start to share how they feel, they say things that really worry you. Things about their mental health, things about their functioning, things that are a shift in their outlook, and they just seem not quite themselves. You’re going to want to do something about that, like seek the health of a mental health professional. It might be calling a crisis number, it might be helping and inviting your essential worker to explore therapy options, and it might be coming together as a community and really supporting that loved one, not by yourself. And so opening up these conversations can be scary, but please know that there are mental health and behavioral health specialists out here ready to help. Thank you for all of your work and connecting with your loved one.