What are some way you have found to help your loved one?

My girlfriend was hospitalized for the first time last month. She has not been officially diagnosed because her doctors want to wait and see how her condition develops, but it appears very likely she will either by diagnosed with Schizophrenia, or Schizoaffective Disorder. She will probably be released from the hospital next week, but she has been allowed to spend her weekends home, and during the week she is allowed to be home for part of the day. We’re both close to our 20s.

Now with the title. Are there any things which might not be obvious at first that I can do to help her? I know that what I can do is limited, but I often feel helpless when she is going through episodes. When she is convinced of a delusion and nothing is getting through to her and she’s scared, I don’t know what to do. She has sometimes expressed the idea of not taking her medication, if she did that and stopped listening to me, I’m not sure what I would do.

And also, are there any mistakes to avoid when caring for your loved one? I wonder if I have any blind spots and am doing any harm unknowingly because I am new to this.

Any and all answers are appreciated, thank you very much!

Keeping a daily journal has been strongly encouraged for our family members. For some, it’s a way to see the difference between their lives on meds and their lives off meds in their own writing. I wonder if you were to create a journal time together in your daily schedule, each with your own journal?

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Educate yourself self on the disorder, become familiar with the practice of leap leapinstitute.org
And familiar with NAMI.org
If she becomes escalated try to remain calm

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Thank you @megmeg and @hope!

That is a good idea with the journals, she does journal already but I don’t.

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