Hi @Former-Member - good question. In my personal lived experience there are really no black and white answers here as to where we fit into the category of being able and capable to sustain productive healthy relationships utilising the tips given when mentally ill. We are all as unique as are our own personal experiences, circumstances, intentions, relationship experiences, trust levels, values, choices, genetic makeup, individual strength of will and resolve, knowledge, negative and positive outlook we adopt and our personal headspace; our capacity for insight (seeing the signs of healthy versus unhealthy relations), spiritual and emotional maturity, and our capacity to love and to give are at all different levels.
In my own life experience with psychosis (due to childhood abuse) and witnessing my daughters - there is definitely diminished responsibility and the capacity to nurture relations with others at that time when that sick as our perception of reality and rationale is out. We can barely cope with life at that time let alone nurture the life of another. Same can be for when someone is chronically physically ill or is facing dire life circumstances. All depends.
For me when I had a mental breakdown it was relying on the care and love of others together with the right professional help, to guide me out of it to better mental health and well being. I was vulnerable and unable to give in relationships at the same capacity as when I was healthier. But it did not diminish the love I felt for special others, such as my husband and children at that time. Just my capacity to express and act on it when at my worse and most blind with pessimism and pain. The mind, emotions and spirit is fighting a nightmare.
In order to keep and sustain reasonably healthy relations in that state I needed to do my upmost to "not give into the mental illness or to give up". Not an easy feat when despair and dread kept knocking at my door. I had to fight it with a positive outlook and renewed resolve and purpose for myself and for those I loved. A choice. To keep that I had to let go of the past, self doubt and toxic people who fed my negative outlook and state of mind.
I had to find a will and a way to keep and sustain the love I had from others and find it for life. I had to fight the negative thoughts and seek the right treatments/counselling/lifestyle to remain strong enough to create a healthy relationship with myself, life and others. A real battle. The more I fought it the stronger I became and the more capable I became of nurturing relationships when faced with depression and anxiety. That's where I fitted in. It's a work in progress. The key is to keep pushing through the mental anguish and do the opposite of the negativity it may dictate. 💕
