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5 FEBRUARY 2010
NO 1538
Carers' support groups
There are a variety of methods of providing emotional support for carers, including individual counselling or therapy, both of which can be extremely useful for carers needing extensive or individual support. But here we consider an approach which has proved enduringly popular – the carers' support group. When such groups are running effectively they provide an excellent means of allowing carers to express how they feel in a supportive environment. One of the problems of this approach is that when groups are run by volunteers, carers or workers without a background in therapeutic work, it is the area of emotional expression which can be the most difficult to deal with.
This means that the level of emotional support provided by groups may be variable. Often people may be encouraged to talk, but then the facilitator is unable to cope if they become emotional. For instance, the facilitator or other members may try to discourage someone from crying through comforting them, rather than allowing them to release their emotions. Sometimes support groups may not address people's emotional needs at all, because the ethos of the group is to keep things on a practical or discursive level so as not to 'upset' people. Unfortunately, such an approach underestimates the power of a group to move an individual who may have had little previous experience of people listening to them sympathetically. Even where groups are determinedly practical it is quite usual for some people to become emotional when they first attend and the facilitator needs to know how to handle this appropriately. It also fails to address some important needs – the opportunity to express their feelings in a safe, non-judgmental and understanding environment may be an essential stage for carers who may have been socially isolated, or have not had the sort of relationships in which discussing emotional issues was acceptable.
CHRISTINE HERON
Heron, C. (1998). Working with carers. London and Bristol, PA. Jessica Kingsley
