Hi @Month04,

Welcome to the Forums. My name is FloatingFeather and I am one of the peer support workers at SANE.

My heart goes out to you and the girl you are caring for. Being a carer can be a very lonely, misunderstood and isolating experience. I get what you are going through a little as I have been an emotional carer for a close family member who has a serious mental health diagnosis for the past 20 years. During this time they have become more socially isolated so that I am now pretty much they only person they talk to / trust outside their professional team. That is a lot of responsibility - particularly if you have your own issues going on such as your own mental health concerns.

I agree with @hanami and would encourage you to reach out to the organisations suggested by them. I would also encourage you to prioritise yourself and your needs first because you really can't `drink from an empty cup'. I know that this is easier said that done but what I have learned over the years as a carer is that despite our best efforts we can only do so much, be so much, help so much, etc. As much as we would like to wave a magic wand and make things better for the people we care about it's just not really possible.

I do think it is good that she will be meeting up with a trauma counsellor soon. I also think it is good that you are getting counselling support too but it sounds like you need more the day to day support. Can you ask the counsellor / GP / school counsellor/ local community centre if there know of any resources available to help?

There is an organisation called Reachout Australia which is an anonymous online organisation for younger people to get support and meet peers that maybe in similar situations. I will add the link here just in case the teenage girl you care for may be interested in - Reachout Australia. There is also a section for parents / carers.

I really feel for you both and understand when it comes to trauma, particularly when it is with a younger person it is really important how we approach things - but I also understand that somethings are just too much for one person to handle alone so please reach out for support. Even just having someone to talk to that really listens can be helpful.

On an aside SANE is having something called Topic Tuesday this coming Tuesday (5.30pm to 7pm) which is basically a live text chat. This Topic Tuesday is around being a carer and what that may entail - I have add a link here if you are interested Topic Tuesday (just in case you are interested).

Warm regards,

FloatingFeather 

PS. Just a couple of tips that may help you on the forums:

Tip 1 - if you want to directly chat with someone on the Forums use the @ symbol and then start typing their name directly after it. A dropdown box should appear, and you then select their name. This ensures that they are notified of any posts you mention them in.

Tip 2 – the most recent posts are the latest page numbers.