Do you think your children have a good sibling relationship? Do they fight more than they enjoy each other’s company? As parents, it is important to make sure that your children bond well with each other and reduce rivalry and conflict by encouraging teamwork, involving the siblings to play together, and helping them resolve their issues constructively.
Parents make the home a healthy and safe space to ensure that children grow up feeling loved and secured in a healthy environment.
A strong sibling bond often plays a major role in how they will form other relationships and interact with their friends or peers or romantic partners in life. Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Emily H Sanders in a recent Instagram post talked about promoting healthy sibling behaviour.
She stated that children should not be forced or manipulated. She said every child adds a new dynamic to the home, so it may end up with siblings quarrelling.
She shared 5 tips for parents to avoid with siblings-
1. Favouritism or preferential treatment to one sibling and comparing them is a sure way to ignite sibling rivalry and build resentment.
2. Creating competition among the siblings or pitting them against each other and comparing their actions or results to motivate others will only make them resentful of the other.
3. Making an example of one sibling and asking the other to follow will create insecurity and tension.
4. Forcing siblings into care-taking roles
5. Not taking any action against abusive behaviour
Emily shares tips for parents to build a healthy relationship with siblings-
1. She advises celebrating and respecting the differences between the siblings
2. She urges parents to create tasks for siblings to tackle together, like picking up their toys together by putting on a timer.
3. Emily believes parents should avoid stopping minor spats between the children, but they must intervene if they become cruel or abusive towards the other.
4. She recommends encouraging activities like dancing, giggling, and playing together as it would release oxytocin hormone.
5. She reminds parents that their relationship is extremely important with each of the siblings. For them to feel safe and healthy, security with their parents is necessary.
