By Gabby Davis
Most people never realize how having siblings can affect you not only in negative, but also positive ways. When reading this you may think your own siblings are so annoying and you’d rather be the only child. Maybe then you wouldn’t have to clean up after them, watch them, share your things with them, or be annoyed with them all the time. But trust me you’d be lost without your siblings.
Loy Norrix senior, sixteen year old Nikia Harris has 7 siblings Tamara Joyce (32), Cerise Bloodworth (29), Greg Harris (22), Kiesha Harris (20), Kiara Harris (15), Kianna Harris (14), and Takarra Harris (13). Having this many siblings makes the house very full. With mostly sisters you can imagine what it’s like in the Harris household. Nikia feels the most frustrating part about having this many siblings is when they take too long in the bathroom, especially when everyone needs to get ready for school, because they all want to make sure they look good.
“It can be very irritating when they know there’s more than a couple of us that need to use the bathroom,” said Nikia.
Like any other family, Nikia’s siblings do irritate her. She mentions how they all irritate her equally. They all push that same button. For example, if her sister takes a shirt of hers without asking, that can irritate her. Harris thinks her sisters should ask first. What if she wanted to wear that shirt the next day but couldn’t find it because someone took it without asking?
Little do you know having siblings helps you more than you think. According to www.RealSimple.com, siblings can have an impact on your mental and physical health. Having siblings can affect who you become later in life. Siblings can boost your mental health in a way your parents can’t. They can be someone who can listen and understand things that your parents can’t. The bonds you create with your siblings give you a lifetime of support. It’s scientifically supported that “strong social ties can help you live longer because it makes you want to fight for that person,” according to www.RealSimple.com.
A time when Nikia realized her siblings could help more than anyone else was last year when she felt alone and went through some personal challenges. She was dealing with personal issues and needed help, but when she came home her siblings were constantly checking on her, letting her know that she wasn’t alone. This helped boost her mental health and caused her to understand that she mattered. All of her siblings were there every step of the way with helping Nikia get back to where she wanted to be. She will never forget how supportive they were.
“Yes, my siblings help my mental health because they always keep me happy no matter what,” said Nikia.
Having siblings can help you with many of your problems because you always have someone there for you and someone to put a smile on your face no matter what. Siblings know how to make you smile even when you don’t want to. This doesn’t mean you won’t have hard times or get annoyed because you will.
“It can be overwhelming because when one has a problem, another always needs help which can be annoying. Some people say you wouldn’t want a lot of siblings. But I would say you would love it,” said Nikia.
Nikia loves all her siblings but she has a closer bond with Kiara because she’s closest in age. So if she wants to go somewhere she asks Kiara. Kiara relates to Nikia better than the rest of her siblings. Growing up they were treated as twins. They dressed alike and did everything together, which caused them to grow a different type of bond.
Don’t get me wrong, some people can have siblings and love them to death but feel like they don’t help their mental health. Everyone deals with things differently some feel better hiding things from their family including siblings.
“No, my siblings don’t help my mental health. They make it worse,” said junior Ishia Canada.
This could be the case with some siblings. They’re not required to be friendly, you don’t always get what you want, snacks never last, the bathroom is always occupied. These are things that might make people feel as if they want to be the only child.
“I would say one positive thing for me about having multiple siblings is that you always have someone to go to and never feel alone, one bad thing for me would have to be that you have to share almost everything with them growing up,” said Harris.
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Having Siblings Impacts You in Various Ways
December 21, 2018
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