Family and friends

Advice for family and friends

Are you a relative or friend who is worried about someone and their mental health? Do you want to know more about mental health or about psychosis?

As a relative or friend, it can be hard sometimes to know what to do for the best. People often don’t recognise problems in themselves and it can be hard to know what you can do that will be helpful. At the same time, we know that family and friends support, is vital to help people with mental health problems to recover.

I think friends might have helped me to engage with services because they reminded me that I had a place to get back to if you see what I mean, like I've got a goal you know.
Tom, aged 24

Talking to someone yourself, about what’s happening can be difficult, especially if you’re worried that they will respond badly, over-react or even judge you in some way. On top of all this, it can be difficult to do anything when you’re worried and already working really hard to try to manage everything.

If any of this sounds familiar, then this section is especially for you. There is advice for family and friends, a booklet that you can download, stories and tips from other friends and family members who've gone through similar things, and a forum where you can share your story, get some advice or hear what worked for others. We've developed this page with and for relatives and friends of people with mental health problems.