Sharing intensive care relatives' experiences

Whatever stage your relative is at in their recovery, stress and anxiety will have been a big part in your life recently. Even on discharge from hospital, the patient can face setbacks and frustrations during a long recovery period.

Relatives can feel the psychological effects too. Caring for someone who may be depressed, anxious or frustrated at how their recovery is going may bring about feelings of despair. Hearing other people's experiences, how they coped and how the outcome can be positive can help. It's not unusual to feel angry at times over what has happened and to feel guilt too for these seemingly selfish feelings. You’re not the only one to have felt like this and others have found that accepting these feelings as a temporary phase can help to avoid dwelling on the negative moments.

If you would like to tell us about your own experiences you can reach us using the 'contact us' form. If you'd like to share your experience with others, we’d like to hear from you.