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Last few days together

Stage Two – Last few days together

During the last few days together, you might be feeling sad and a bit distant – you may not want to accept that your parent or loved one will be leaving, and you put the thought to the back of your mind.

Talking to your parent or loved one is hard because you know they will be going soon. It might be difficult to focus and concentrate at this stage.

Of course, you could not be feeling this way at all. Remember experiencing different emotions is ok.

At this stage of the rollercoaster, you might want to give your serving parent or loved one something to take away with them. This could include a photograph or a letter for them to read when they are away.

Another idea could be to plan a special meal that you can have together before your serving parent or loved one deploys. Young people also suggest going for a walk and taking time to do something you enjoy together such as watching a movie or baking a cake!

Have a look at some further resources below to help you with this stage of the ride.

 

Have a look at our recommendations for some activities to do from our Wellbeing Journal.

Positive Self-Talk Self-Compassion
Music Playlist

Sadness is an emotion that you may experience at this stage

Feeling sad can affect us in different ways.

Depending on what is making us feel sad, our feelings might cause us to cry, to struggle to sleep, and even lose interest in the things we normally enjoy.

But, it’s important to know that feeling sad doesn’t last forever.

What can we do when we feel sad – Find out more from our colleague, Gillian!

Feeling angry is something we might experience during this stage.

Feeling angry is something all of us have experienced in some way. When we feel angry we may feel it very strongly and sometimes sense we are losing control.

When we feel angry too often, it can begin to impact our friendships, and can cause us to get into trouble at school and at home.

When we feel angry, sometimes its because our emotions become too big or difficult for us to deal with.

We might show our anger by shouting or even hitting things or other people due to feeling unable to cope with these bug emotions. Knowing how to control anger is really important.

Find out more from our colleague, Gillian!

Browse further resources

We have lots of useful resources co-produced with young people just like you.

Scroll through our resources below.

Hand-Breathing Exercise

Anger often begins due to feelings of being overwhelmed, suggesting it may be linked to emotions such as stress, worry, embarrassment and so on.

Hand breathing helps us to take notice of how our body feels, and to learn how to distract our mind and relax our bodies.

Remember! Like all breathing techniques, hand breathing is most effective when you are skilled at using it. Try to practice at first while you feel calm.

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