For people living with long-term concussion symptoms, relationships can become challenging. The relationship with a spouse or partner can be particularly delicate to navigate, as issues that existed prior to brain injury tend to be magnified after it, and a marriage or partnership relationship is typically one that is private and partners may be hesitant to seek help in fear of violating that privacy. It’s important to remember that neither partner was expecting or wanting this sudden shift in roles and responsibilities or the new difficulties with communication that typically come along with brain injury.
In this week’s episode of The Concussion Coach Podcast, guest Shannon Clark shares some of the strategies for managing relationships she discovered along the way as she dealt with post-concussion syndrome. I’ll link to the episode below, but in the meantime, here are a couple of tips she shared that will hopefully be helpful as you and your loved ones are navigating the murky waters of PCS recovery:
- Remember that you’re two good people dealing with a hard situation. You’re on the same team.
- Have a code word to let your partner know to drop a subject and come back to it later when you have more capacity to handle the discussion.
- For the uninjured spouse — be aware that open-ended questions (even such as, “how was your day?” may feel overwhelming to a concussed brain — your partner may feel, as Shannon did, like you’re asking them to ‘write an essay.’
- To the extent possible, give yourself and your partner the benefit of the doubt — believe that they’re doing the best they’re capable of at this moment, even if that ‘best’ doesn’t look like you or they would like it to.
Enjoy the interview here: https://youtu.be/sKbrvuRuyfs
If you or your partner would like personalized coaching and help navigating relationships with PCS, I can help with that! Click below for a free consultation.
Always in your corner,
Bethany Lewis
The Concussion Coach