What to do. Listening skills

 

Let the person talk and say how they are feeling.

Give the person your full time.

Let them know you really listening by giving full eye contact

Do not talk about yourself, listen to the person talk about their situation.

 Keep a record, diary, etc, even record yourself with the person.

Have you let the person do most of the talking without interruption?

Have you given the person all the time they need?

Give effective listening, it helps the person trust you.

Do not rush the person, they will not feel safe if they are rushed

Just because they may pause does not mean you can interrupt; they may be thinking about what to say.

Take time to understand what they are saying.

Some people may find it hard to express how they are feeling so be patient.

Do not judge the person, allow them to relax and talk as short and as long as they want to.

Reflect on their emotions.

Ask open questions for example, how are you feeling today?

Do not jump in with your suggestions while the person is talking or even if the pause unless they invite you to speak for whatever reason.

Do not impose your opinion but reflex on what the person says.

 No asking questions or say anything that stops the person from talking.

 Ask open questions that empowers the person to talk.

Paraphrasing to make sure what you have written is what the person has said, and you have understood them correctly.

Checking by reading what you have written while the person was talking to find out whether or not you have written it down write and understood the people or not.

Repeating back to the person if needs be and checking your hearing what the person is wanting you to hear.

          Do not let bad replies put you off and, it is important, do not feel you have to fill a silence, just respect, and accept how the person wants things.

Forus on the person’s safety and yours, they may not be ready for advice yet.

They may just want to talk things off their chest.

If you have any concerns they may hurt, harm themselves, or and be in danger, call the police.

Signpost them to such local mental health services such as the Samaritans or local mental health crisis a team such as Black country line 0345 6460827