Formulating Interpersonal Conflict, Relationship Factors and Abuse

Relationships and how we navigate through them in our lives can have an overwhelming impact on our wellbeing, behaviours and outlooks. This chapter will examine in particular how detrimental relationships through family members, partners, care givers and trusted others can have a devastating effect on our development and mental health, taking in to account childhood experiences and the lack of opportunity for them to be acknowledged and/or supported. We will begin by reviewing some of the key underpinning and theoretical literature in these areas before moving on to look at an autobiographical account which presents a number of situations around relationships and more specifically abuse, where themes of abuse throughout childhood and adulthood occurred. These will be examined through differing approaches to formulating these experiences in combination with the individual who experienced them. You will hopefully see that this is quite a journey here for all involved in this formulation, which has involved a good deal of reflection. These approaches and what has been learnt will be further considered for what can be taken away and applied to mental health nursing practices and our values as mental health nurses. As you read through this chapter, be aware of any issues which may surface for yourself and write them down if you can. These may be things you may want to revisit, either in relation to your own practice (through clinical restorative/developmental supervision) or through personal support routes.