Carers of people diagnosed with personality disorder and complex needs are invited to a course starting in Colchester next week where they can learn more about ways to support their loved one and themselves.
Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT) runs a Skills for Carers programme, which is held in different locations around Essex.
The next course will be held at The Haven Project, 10 St Peter’s Court, Colchester every Wednesday from 10 June to 22 July at 12pm-2pm. It is open to any carers from across Essex who can attend.
Anyone interested in joining this course or future ones is asked to complete an expression of interest form, which can be found on this link.
Different topics are covered each week, such as what personality disorder is, carers’ rights, emotions and validation, the family environment and problem solving.
Carers can also learn skills to improve communication with their loved ones and what to do if they experience a mental health crisis.
These skills are based on dialectical behavioural therapy, a type of behavioural-focused therapy that their loved ones may also receive as part of their treatment.
Families and carers are also supported to look after their own health and wellbeing, and are encouraged to take part in discussions and group exercises.
Tony (names have been changed to protect identities) previously took part in the Skills for Carers programme and has also attended a peer support group run by EPUT’s Personality Disorder and Complex Needs Service User Network.
They said: “Living with a loved one with borderline personality disorder is not something that ever filtered into my consciousness. Until a few years ago I’d never even heard of it.”
As a teenager, their daughter began experiencing bouts of anger and extreme anxiety that would frequently last for hours, often followed by feelings of shame and despair.
Tony feared for their daughter’s safety and future, and struggled with how best to respond to keep things calm.
They said: “I have now found strategies to manage my own emotions but of far greater importance strategies to help my daughter manage and navigate her difficult condition.
“I read recommended literature, accepted invites to courses for carers and joined a support group.
“Peer support in particular improved my understanding and is a forum for sharing those all-important strategies.
“Unlike friends and family who often don’t understand my peers have shared insight and listen without judgement.
“I have accepted our lives will be different now but things can and have begun to improve and I can be more hopeful, the support and knowledge I have gained all having a positive impact on our lives.”
Another carer who completed the Skills for Carers programme said: “The facilitators were first class. I felt comfortable and at ease, which enabled me to speak and participate without being self-conscious or feeling judged.
“Any points or questions raised by myself or others were always responded to, never passed over or ignored. I genuinely felt that my contribution was valued.”
You can read more about the Personality Disorder and Complex Needs Service User Network on their webpage.
About EPUT:
- EPUT has a vision to be the leading health and wellbeing service in the provision of mental health and community care: Who we are – Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust
- EPUT provides services to more than 100,000 patients at any one time and our staff are focused on providing high quality care in often complex situations.
- The organisation has invested in inpatient facilities and community services to make them safer and more therapeutic. We have extensively invested in technology to keep patients safer, enhanced training, and are continuously working with our staff, patients, their families and carers to use learning and best practice to enhance our quality of care.
- While there is more to do, the Trust has made significant progress through innovation:
- Our 111 mental health crisis phone line ensures people in need can access support 24 hours a day, 365 days a year
- People with lived experience have been employed in designated roles across the Trust, ensuring patient voice is heart of the organisation and all that we do.
- A number of new initiatives have been launched, helping people access the support they need when they need it most. These include a mental health urgent care department, By Your Side maternal mental health service, Rough Sleeper team, mental health crisis ambulance cars, virtual wards and neuromodulation service.
- EPUT was formed on 1 April 2017 and provides community health, mental health and learning disability services across Essex, Luton and Bedfordshire and Suffolk. We employ more than 7,200 staff working across more than 200 sites.
- To read more about our priorities and commitments to deliver the highest quality and safest care possible, visit https://eput.nhs.uk/about-us/2023-2028-strategic-plan/