I spoke today at the Polk Family Caregivers Summit on Celebrating the Unique Role of Siblings. I had wondered about the invitation to speak since I work with children primarily, but the organizers assured me people attend with disabled children and want to hear about children's issues too. However, my audience were all caring for elderly parents or spouses and wanting information on caretaking issues with siblings. So a quick switch, turned off the Powerpoint essentially and we had an interesting discussion. I am writing about it here as what struck me was that the issues were the same for these families as for those with children with special needs. The main tools needed to help make the relationships successful and for families to thrive are open communication, being honest and straightforward, planning for the future, specifying roles for members of the family, knowing your options and resources, becoming an advocate and not being afraid to question things or to stand up for your family member. In writing the presentation, I liked that research has shown that having a member with a disability in the family often can strengthen the family and the sibling's sense of family and pride. Food for thought!!!
I spoke today at the Polk Family Caregivers Summit on Celebrating the Unique Role of Siblings. I had wondered about the invitation to speak since I work with children primarily, but the organizers assured me people attend with disabled children and want to hear about children's issues too. However, my audience were all caring for elderly parents or spouses and wanting information on caretaking issues with siblings. So a quick switch, turned off the Powerpoint essentially and we had an interesting discussion. I am writing about it here as what struck me was that the issues were the same for these families as for those with children with special needs. The main tools needed to help make the relationships successful and for families to thrive are open communication, being honest and straightforward, planning for the future, specifying roles for members of the family, knowing your options and resources, becoming an advocate and not being afraid to question things or to stand up for your family member. In writing the presentation, I liked that research has shown that having a member with a disability in the family often can strengthen the family and the sibling's sense of family and pride. Food for thought!!!
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