The Well Sibling: Challenges and Possibilities

The impact on the family of a child with serious mental illness or some other form of disability has been well documented by many authors. Contributing to this impact is society’s attitude to mental disabilities, which has been ambivalent and marginalizing at best and shunning at worst. Because of this, individuals and families dealing with mental disabilities tend to become isolated. Further, onset of mental illness often causes disruption of the family’s life cycle and profoundly affects the sibling relationship. This paper will consider the nature of the impact of the ill child on the siblings and propose some ways to address and manage the powerful reactions of well siblings in fostering a more satisfying individual and family adjustment and in preventing problems for the well sibling and future generations.