Nancy Collamer will never forget the day her husband was laid off. “Our morning began with a phone call from his boss,” she recalls. “He was told to report to HR for a mandatory meeting at 10 a.m.” As an independent career counselor and former HR director (and now the author of The Layoff Survival Guide), Collamer saw the writing on the wall.

If there’s one thing that many entrepreneurs can depend on throughout the ups and downs of business ownership, it is the reassurance of a supportive partner. But what happens when your partner is laid off from a corporate position and you are called on to provide both emotional and financial support?

After a period of adjustment, open the lines of communication and keep them open. “It’s very important for the two of you to sit down and talk about the ‘new normal,’ from financial issues to household routines,” Collamer says. “You might assume that he should take over all household responsibilities, while he’s thinking, ‘My job is finding a job. I need total flexibility to respond to any opportunity.’”

And, Collamer says, there are no hard-and-fast rules about how much you should involve yourself in your partner’s job search, although you should be helpful. “Looking for a job is a job,” she explains. “The difficulty is the lack of structure, especially for someone used to a corporate environment. They’ve got to fill in their calendar, honor those appointments. That said, you can schedule in some time together for recreation and lifestyle decisions.”