How not to say the wrong thing (2013)
<i>People who are suffering from trauma don&#x27;t need advice. They need comfort and support.</i><p>Comfort in, dump out is a simple rule that makes sense in many situations. Breast cancer is given as an example in the article.<p>I think it breaks down in many of life&#x27;s situations, though.<p>What if the trauma is self-inflicted? At what point do those outside the ring become enablers?<p>For example, a friend of yours refuses to learn how to manage resources. Every week is a new crisis due to running out of money or being late.<p>At what point do you sit down with your friend and explain how their lack of planning is hurting them?<p>Back to disease, what if the person is suffering negative health effects due to being overweight? And yet they refuse to change their junk food diet.<p>What then? Listen, offer to do dishes and make a pot roast?<p>Or something more likely to help the person make the connection that their health is in their own hands?