Did you have a good relationship with your siblings?
I found a great article on Yahoo this morning. The article discusses the fact that not enough studies have been performed on the impact of siblings upon one another but rather most people look at the relationship of a person with their parents for the most part. Like the author of the article and the professionals sited in the article, I do agree that your siblings have a huge impact upon who and what type of person you will be as you grow up. My brother and I were very close growing up; for the most part he never made me feel like he didn’t want me around. He was protective but not overly so, and I can’t remember a single instance where I felt like he didn’t want me around. He had his own friends and I had mine; he wasn’t a “bad kid” at all. If he was, I didn’t know about it—he would never let me see that part of him if he was up to no good. He was supportive, sweet and caring. I believe he was an excellent role model for me and although I do understand that I am my own person and that I have my own “nature” which for the most part is that of a “good girl who looks before she leaps”, I do think that my brother being the person he was and so nurturing to me helped to keep me on the right path growing up. My mom and dad had a lot to do with all of this, of course, as they brought us both up to do the right things and would not allow us to be mean to each other, but I do place a lot of credit upon my brother–he helped me turn out pretty darn good.
Thanks Michael. I love you. I wish that all the men in the world were like you and dad.
If anyone would like to read the article which spotlights HOW siblings can affect you, view the full article here: http://health.yahoo.com/featured/36/7-ways-your-siblings-may-have-shaped-you/
Here is an excerpt:
They may buffer stress. Warm sibling relationships can be protective, says Dunn, and seem to buffer kids against stressful events, like parents’ separation.
They provide good practice. Research has clocked the rate of sibling squabbles at anywhere between six to 10 disputes per hour for certain childhood age groups, says Kramer. While these conflicts can be a headache for parents, they can help kids make developmental strides in a “safe relationship” and provide good training for interacting with peers, says Kramer. “You know there’s nothing really that you can do to make this [other] child terminate the relationship.” No matter what, he’ll be there tomorrow at the breakfast table. That safety enables siblings to practice behaving in ways they aren’t able to with other people. Sibling spats help kids learn what they think is right; to negotiate and compromise; and to tolerate the negative emotions that crop up in life. “This is the bright side,” Kramer says. “Obviously, there’s an unpleasant side as well.”
She adds, “Some evidence suggests that when kids have good relationships with siblings, they’re more likely to develop good relationships with their peers.” But we’re still learning about that, she says.
They may help raise our vulnerability to mental-health issues. Sibling strife during mid-childhood is a predictor of increased anxiety, depression, and delinquent behavior in adolescence, the University of Denver’s Clare Stocker has reported. What’s more, a 2007 study in the American Journal of Psychiatry found that men who had poor relationships with even one sibling before age 20 were significantly more likely to become depressed by age 50 than men who got along with their siblings, independent of their relationship with their parents. This effect may not hold true for women, who weren’t included in the study, notes Robert Waldinger, an associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and leader of the research.
They can grease a slide into bad behavior. Drinking. Smoking. Delinquency. Some research suggests that siblings’ bad habits rub off. “If you have a sibling who is participating in those types of activities…….
For more on this article click the link above.
Hoping your relationships with your siblings are good ones….but if they aren’t, remember it’s never too late to mend them.
Blessings,
Cheryl
