NC for this...
About 20 years ago, I struggled very badly with mental health issues, addiction, suicidal thoughts and the like. This resulted in me being sectioned and receiving inpatient treatment for a number of months.
At the time, I was single, had no children and no mortgage, so I was able to focus on myself and go where I needed to at a moments notice.
I got through it, changed jobs, got married and have two fantastic kids (now 7 and 12).
Over the past year, life has started to get the better of me and for my own wellbeing, I’ve arranged for more inpatient treatment next week. My partner is aware of my struggles and is supporting me seeking treatment, but I’ve done a fantastic job of hiding everything from the kids.
Now the inpatient treatment is looming, I need to tell them I’m going away for a month, but I don’t know how.
I want to minimise their upset and concern, but still be relatively honest with them.
Does anyone have any thoughts on wording I could use? So as not to drip feed, my partner has fairly recently finished treatment for cancer (this was difficult for us all, but fingers crossed all will be ok) and my eldest struggles with theirs and other people’s emotions.