Siblings have a special bond built on shared family life, mutual support, and countless experiences together. If you grew up with brothers or sisters, you’ll relate to these things that only those with siblings truly understand. They may even bring back some fun memories.
The Never-Ending Battle for the Remote Control
With each sibling wanting a different TV show or movie on, there’s often a fight for the TV remote within young family households. This competition teaches negotiation as siblings learn to share, and might include agreeing on a trade or compromising on which show to watch.
Sibling Rivalry
According to Harvard Health Publishing, “Sibling rivalry is a remarkably normal feature of family life that can sometimes help to push children to do and be better.” This rivalry can often lead to jealousy of one another, but generally, over time, siblings will learn to celebrate each other’s achievements rather than compete against them.
Non-Negotiable Sharing
When you share a household and sometimes a bedroom, the concept of personal belongings often becomes blurred, and things such as clothes, gadgets, and toys will be shared between siblings. This can lead to disputes but can also teach fairness, respect, and the importance of communication to resolve conflicts.
Teasing and Nicknames
It’s common for siblings to tease each other, and this can often build into inside jokes and strengthen bonds. Nicknames are common and usually come from memorable incidents or personal traits that become amusing symbols of the siblings’ shared history.
Secret Keepers
Siblings often share secrets with one another and rely on each other for support and advice. This creates a deep trust in their relationship, but it can sometimes turn into leverage against each other. This is where siblings threaten to reveal the others’ secrets in order to gain some advantage or in moments of anger.
Birth Order Personalities
Lots of theories suggest that birth order can influence personality traits and how siblings interact with one another. Very Well Mind says that “firstborns were more likely to develop a strong sense of responsibility, middleborns a desire for attention, and lastborns a sense of adventure and rebellion.”
Unsolicited Advice and Protection
Older siblings will often feel compelled to offer their younger siblings advice, drawing on their own experiences. Siblings usually need to find a happy balance between offering guidance and protection and respecting each other’s autonomy in order to ensure their independence.
Inside Jokes and Shared Memories
Inside jokes between siblings are often incomprehensible to outsiders and create a unique bond between brothers and sisters, reinforcing their shared history. Recalling and laughing about these jokes and shared memories from family vacations, mishaps, or everyday life is a significant source of joy for people.
Partners in Crime and Adventure
Mischief and adventures in childhood can create a sense of camaraderie between siblings and foster a deep bond through shared experiences and secrets. The shared history of getting into and out of trouble together not only creates lasting memories but also teaches important lessons about teamwork, responsibility, and the consequences of one’s actions.
The Sibling Support System
Having an understanding of each other’s challenges and accomplishments within their shared family environment means siblings can provide unparalleled emotional support. According to the National Library of Medicine, “Sibling warmth and support is linked to peer acceptance and social competence, academic engagement and educational attainment, and intimate relationships in adolescence and young adulthood.”
The Constant Comparison
Often compared to one another by parents, relatives, teachers, and even themselves, siblings can find themselves in competition with one another when it comes to their achievements, behavior, and characteristics. Over time, siblings generally learn to appreciate their own talents and qualities and move toward mutual respect and support.
The Unofficial Clothes Sharing Agreement
Those close in age or size to their siblings will often end up sharing clothes, sometimes willingly and other times not. This can lead to a mix of frustration and camaraderie, where sharing can lead to disputes but also a bond between them.
Choosing Sides
If a family has multiple siblings, alliances can form between them and shift over time, especially during conflicts or when making family decisions. This teaches siblings about negotiation and loyalty, as well as how to be empathetic with others’ viewpoints and perspectives.
Non-Verbal Communication
Just as inside jokes are often incomprehensible to outsiders, siblings also develop nonverbal communication cues, developing an understanding of each other’s gestures, facial expressions, and tones of voice at a deep level. This can be a powerful tool and highlights the deep connection they share.
The Shared Burden of Family Responsibilities
From household chores to caring for younger siblings or elderly family members, sharing the load creates a sense of joint responsibility. This can lead to both cooperation and conflict, but ultimately it fosters a sense of teamwork and mutual reliance.
Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Living in the same space means siblings can have intense conflicts but also have a unique ability to forgive. According to the Encyclopedia on Early Childhood Development, the sibling relationship teaches you “to learn how to manage disagreements, and to learn how to regulate both positive and negative emotions in socially acceptable ways.”
Mutual Support
Despite any rivalries or disputes, there’s often an unwritten rule among siblings that when facing external challenges or threats, they stand united in support of one another. This demonstrates deep loyalty and commitment and reinforces the value of family bonds.
