Read the stories of eight adult siblings as they reflect on their experiences of secondary school. We asked them what helped them as a child, what didn’t, and what support they would want for young siblings today. The responses are powerful. “I told my teacher that my sister has cerebral palsy and he immediately recognised … Continued
Once I had a sister. Her name was Alison and she was twenty-one months younger than me, the middle child of our parents. We shared the same straight brown hair and green eyes, different from our younger brother with his blue eyes and blonde hair. Alison and I were born uneventfully at home. In the … Continued
“A sweet tale of sibling love, told without sentimentality” Summer BrotherBy Jaap Robben, translated from the Dutch by David Doherty (2021); World EditionsReview by Pam Foley, adult sibling. Teenager Brian comes from a dysfunctional family; his parents are divorced and he lives with his conniving father in a trailer home, located in a remote Dutch … Continued
My earliest memory of my brother is scooting up and down the children’s ward in a toy car at St James’ hospital in Leeds. Although I was almost 3 when he was born, I think I knew even then that he was poorly and somehow ‘different’ to other people’s siblings. Growing up with my brother … Continued
Growing up as the middle sibling to two brothers with profound and multiple learning disabilities has made me the person I am today. Being tuned in to non-verbal brothers taught me to live mindfully well before anyone knew what that might mean. I am aware of the environment around me, changes in sound and light, … Continued
“Being a sibling has taught me so much. It has taught me to be resilient, to never judge a book by it’s cover and most importantly it has taught me about unconditional love” – Chloe Newton Check out Chloe’s article in iNews: “What growing up as a ‘glass child’ with a severely disabled sister taught me … Continued
Above: Joan and her sister, Irene Sibling Joan Corrigan shares her experiences in this powerful two-part blog ‘Accountability’. We know that many siblings will relate to Joan, when she says: “The powerlessness I feel is the worst, but not for me, for my sister. I feel this strong compulsion to protect her, given my skills … Continued
A well-meaning HR Manager once told me that she understood the difficulties I was having juggling issues with my brother’s care and a full-time job because she was a working parent and she too had the juggle childcare and work. I responded (perhaps slightly unfairly on reflection) by pointing out that as a parent she’d … Continued
I have an incredibly unique family as both my brother and sister have a degenerative disease of the nervous system. My Mum is in the last stages of Multiple Sclerosis (MS). So from the get-go I was in a world of disability, experiencing the good, the bad and the down right ugly!!! The advice I … Continued
I was 6 years old and my sister, Sophie, was nearly 5 years old, when Kathryn was born. Kathryn was a really easy baby, but when it came to her two year check – things weren’t quite right. Physically she was fine, but she wasn’t meeting milestones mentally and didn’t have any language. That has … Continued