Why is Family Important?
Family is beneficial because the bonds made can help us through difficult times. They often also support success and unconditional love towards one another. The people you grew up with can bring the best out of you and can see you grow. For the most part, a family may be the only ones who truly know you. They can bring you to a place of peace and ensure that you are happy.
Family is one of the building blocks of our society. Over the years the way family unit works has changed drastically. Now in present times, families do not do things the traditional, nuclear way. For example, eating at the dinner table, spending quality time, and celebrating holidays.
Ensuring Happiness
In most cases, we can’t choose who we are related to. Now what we can do is make sure that the people around us are happy. An unhappy family member can negatively influence your well-being. Growing up in an unhealthy home can contribute to a certain amount of mental health challenges. If you are being controlled or manipulated by a parent or guardian it could affect your ability to make your own decisions. The impact of family dynamics can continue on in your adulthood.
Making sure you have a happy family comes with a genuine commitment. This can be shown through intentions being pure and connections made in between. In a family, everybody can provide you with emotional support. The support can be joyful or harsh at challenging times. They offer comfort, hope, and a caring understanding of your problems. Furthermore, families can create a strong sense of making you feel at home.
Importance of Family Traditions
The importance of family traditions is so kids can have a sense of identity. They set standards for the children of the family to know where they are from and who they live as. The memories from family traditions can help shape your family.
These traditions provide a set time for families to interact and build certain bonds. It usually will be a time to pass on cultural, social, or religious legacy and heritage, connecting generations together.
Family heritage can teach strong values. The proper way of raising kids to adulthood can help them make valuable choices in their lives. For example, if you talk and engage with your kids before bed it will help them develop a good sense of humor.
Showing up and participating in events or reunions shows them that family members and loved ones are a priority. Most family traditions don’t involve religious action. It can be something as simple as a morning routine or everyday agreements.
Sibling Relationships
Sibling relationships can provide a life-long relationship a child can have with a person. Healthy sibling relationships can promote empathy, prosocial behavior, and even academic success. It is important to have close bonds with whom you share a home with. A sibling is not only family but a lifelong friend as well. Keeping siblings together reduces stress, loneliness, and anxiety.
Although sibling relationships can be full of joyful moments, they can also have some negative aspects. Such as arguing, fighting, jealousy, bringing each other down, and not sticking together. Often we get mad at our siblings for unnecessary situations.
A sibling can make a relationship toxic because they may think they are better than you. Or always having a negative opinion about your choices, betrayal, and always having less faith in something you are interested in or pursuing.
Divorce
Divorce affects families for many reasons, such as the benefits and lack of for the children. Children will receive less emotional support and necessary help from both parents. The long-term effects of divorce can cause family trauma. This usually will lead both parents to stress, worry, and exhaustion.
Also, a divorce between the parents can come with blame. Some may forgive one parent for the decision, and then think the other parent is the cause for separation.
In a divorce, women are usually more negatively affected. Women often face more financial and emotional issues in the long run. Often for many women divorce can lead to financial instability, loss of social support, and a decline in mental health wellness. However, both parents after divorce tend to see a decline in their income. The emotional impact of the divorce can cause a woman to go through depression, grief, anger, resentment, and anxiety all at once.
By Nyaire White
Sources
Hanley Foundation – The Importance of Family
APA – Improving sibling relationships
Bloomberg – Workers Earn Less After a Divorce
Featured Image Set – Courtesy of Eric Allix Rodgers’ Flickr – Creative Commons
Inset Image Set – Courtesy of Patrick Connelley’s Flickr – Creative Commons
