What It's like Watching Someone You Love Struggle

This is something everyone probably goes through or probably will go through at a certain point in their life. This isn’t fun or something anyone would genuinely want to go through. What this is, is watching someone you love and care for dearly struggle. In particular though, it is watching them struggle with their mind and mental health. I have been going through this quite some time and it has been quite heartbreaking. I will not disclose to whom this person is, but I will tell you that this person means the world to me. They have been struggling on and off for so long and all I want to do is fix it. But the thing is, you can’t just fix it. Sadly, things don’t work that way and life isn’t easy.

Mental health issues are things people don’t tend to talk about. It seems taboo in some sense, which is odd considering many people deal with mental health problems. Most people don’t open up about these things unless they are truly comfortable with someone. And when someone opens up to you about their struggles, it could be so sad and hard to grasp. This person can be the most wonderful and amazing person you adore, yet deep down inside they are having such a hard time. When you hear the things they tell you about how they aren’t okay, how they don’t feel like themselves, or how they can’t seem to catch a break, you can help but feel like you aren’t doing enough. You try and try your hardest to relieve their pain and making them forget about what is going on in their mind for maybe at least a moment. This doesn’t always work though and they still have their problems. They don’t just go away with a hug or laughter. That is the sad reality of mental illnesses. They don’t just go away and they could even last a lifetime.

You sit there and constantly wonder “What can I do to make this better?” Your mind races with idea after idea and thought after thought. The ideas go as small as a compliment to as big as a whole vacation getaway. You try to find ways to take them out to places, but it doesn’t always work because money can be tight or maybe they are too tired, emotionally or physically, to even go anywhere. You try to give them little gifts here and there, which will put a smile on their face, but you know that materialistic things don’t solve things like this. You constantly tell them that they are amazing and tell them they can do anything, but no matter how much you tell them these things, it never seems to get through their head. On top of all of this, you have to juggle your own problems as well. No matter how hard you try, you will feel like it never is enough. You will feel so helpless and wonder why you suck at everything.

Although you may feel like no matter what you do, you can‘t help or fix things, in reality, you are probably what is keeping them going. All the things you do for them, big and small, makes their life easier. It may make their entire day or even just keep their mind off of their struggles for just a moment. I know watching someone you love deal with mental health issues is hard, but whatever you do, don’t give up on them. They probably need you more than you think.