Family Stress

 FAMILY RELATIONS 

NOVEMBER 13, 2021

08
Family Stress

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Jocelynn Linton

Hello again everybody! And welcome back to the weekly blog. Today we are going to be talking about different stressors in the family. Families are one of the most amazing things that we have on this earth. They are our support system. They are there when no one else is. Of course, not all of our family is biological. Even though families are great, no family comes without hardship or difficulty. Every family goes through different experiences that shape and grow them in different ways. The thing that makes them different is how they react to those experiences. These situations can be known as stressors, or in more extreme cases, crises. Whenever one of these events occurs, there are usually two different ways people react. It either pulls them apart, or draws them closer together. Whether this be divorce, death of a loved one, loss of a job, etc. A strong family can pull through anything. And, if they choose to do so they become stronger. Strength and endurance comes from how we face our trials.

One experience was with one of my roommates. For anonymity’s sake, let’s call her Becca. Becca and her family lived in Utah for many years. After getting a new job, Becca’s father had to pack up the family, and move across the country. They had to leave behind all of their friends, family, and connections as they traveled to Virginia. When they arrived, they found themselves feeling alone and isolated. To make matters worse, when Becca’s family arrived in Virginia, COVID-19 was in full swing and made things even more difficult for the family. They were forced to self isolate and could not go out and meet others or get acquainted with their new environment; the entire family was exhausted and burnt out. This experience could have easily driven them apart and caused the whole experience to be miserable and painful. However, they used this difficult experience to bond and not only draw closer to each other, but closer to God. Much like Becca, we too can all draw closer together to our families  through our tribulations and stressors and endure to the end. 

As stated above, there are many different situations that can cause stress and strain within the family. Another example rocked the world of one of my close family friends, Jessica. A few years ago, Jessica’s grandfather was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and her grandmother was diagnosed with Parkinson’s at about the same time. This heartbreaking news came at an already difficult time for Jessica and her family. Understandably, there was a lot of tension and confusion within the family because of these two diagnoses. It would have been easy for them to turn against each other and against God, but this situation ended up bringing the family closer together physically, spiritually, and emotionally. In order to help with the situation, Jessica and her family packed their belongings and made the difficult decision to move states and live closer to her grandparents. This allowed them to be there for their grandparents as times got harder and as their conditions progressively worsened. Being able to put their own personal feelings and emotions aside, and through prayers and service, Jessica and her family were able to draw closer together.

These two experiences that I shared with you were able to be positively concluded. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. It is of utmost importance that we as individuals strive to connect and understand each other in times of hardship rather than choose to isolate and turn inwards. This will lead to better family connections and a better ability to grow closer together in times of stress and hardship.