We need strong communication with our supporters, which means being able to give and receive information in a healthy and helpful way.
Stories
Experience
Gratitude
Coping
Respect
Self-Care
Vulnerability
Compassion
Pride
Communication
Community
Boundaries
Stories
Behavior
Reflection
Change
NOVEMBER 2022
Monthly topic for supporters
Change can be a loaded word, interpreted as a positive or a negative. Lyme disease inevitably brings some of both kinds of change; for the one living with it and those who support them.
At Generation Lyme, we're here to join you anytime you want to celebrate something good that has come out of difficult circumstances. Looking for the silver lining is a human trait that helps us to survive.
We're also here to navigate the tough changes with you. Sometimes, those are easier to see than silver linings. It's impossible not to be affected when someone you care about is perpetually searching for the answers to help them heal rather than living out their dreams.
We understand that multiple things can be true at once. We are here to hold space for the challenges (and wins) that come with change. We're here to support you as you navigate them. At our Supporters Meet-Ups this month, we welcome all feelings about change.
Control
OCTOBER 2022
Monthly topic for supporters
It isn't just the person healing from Lyme who has to figure out which things can and cannot be controlled with this disease. Supporters and caretakers can experience a feeling of lack of control, as well.
Sometimes plans need to be canceled at the last minute, or whole daily routines redesigned. Sometimes life asks us to surrender control, while others allow us to find creative new angles from which we can establish a sense of control. For those with Lyme, it is meaningful when the people in our lives are willing to experience these changes with us.
Whether someone you care about has been recently diagnosed or you've been deeply entrenched for years, there can still be curveballs that upset life's balance. At Generation Lyme, we want to provide spaces for you to process these life changes. This month, we will be talking about how control comes into, or out of, our day-to-day lives as supporters of someone with Lyme disease.
Compassion
SEPTEMBER 2022
Monthly Topic for supporters
We know that caregiving is challenging. No matter how hard someone tries to support us, the wrong thing can still end up being said, and sometimes supporters may even feel burned out. But you are human. It's okay to make mistakes and extend yourself some compassion when you do.
When someone you care about is newly diagnosed, it can also be challenging to learn all the new areas where they may need to be shown compassion. We appreciate it so much when you take time to understand our lives and learn new ways to relate to what we're going through.
This month at our supporters-centered Gen Lyme Meet-Ups, we'll be talking about all the ways that compassion comes into play when you are a supporter of someone with Lyme disease.