News and Notes from The Johnson Center
Sibling Support
JCCHD | Fri, April 06, 2012 | [Events][Sibling Spotlight]When children are diagnosed with autism it not only affects the child, but the entire family. Specifically, brothers and sisters of children with autism face many challenges—they may become overwhelmed with feelings of jealously, resentment, loneliness, or inadequacy. Many siblings of children with autism report being bullied or feeling embarrassed when in a public setting. In a recent book titled Siblings: The Autism Spectrum Through Our Eyes (2010) children talked about their experiences, feelings, and concerns regarding growing up with a sibling with autism. One sibling noted, “I think that one of the worst things about my brother is that he embarrasses me in public. He does stuff my other friends think is weird” (Johnson & Van Renesselaer, 2010). These emotions can often be overlooked by parents and professionals, especially if siblings don’t want to place additional burden on the family. As one child noted, “Sometimes my world feels as if it revolves around Bailey, and it makes me feel mad at him!” (Johnson & Van Renesselaer, 2010). Often children feel tremendous pressure to be perfect all the time, in order to decrease their parents’ burden
The Johnson Center is committed to supporting the whole family, including siblings. And we are excited to host a Sibling Camp this summer for siblings ages 8-12. We recognize the need to serve this special group of kids and we intend to provide the individual guidance and support they need. We will offer therapeutic activities in a group setting led by our Psychologist, Dr. Claire Schutte and our Child Life Specialist, Jeanna Martinez. Our goal is to offer a fun, supportive, and creative experience where siblings can connect with other siblings. Specific activities include implementing a Sibling Advice Column in which siblings can offer advice to one another. In doing so, participants can support one another while also indirectly reflecting on their own needs and concerns. The camp will also implement fun activities such as a Skittles Game in which each color of the candy represents different questions that relate to the participants’ interests, personality, and feelings towards family members. This activity increases emotional awareness of our participants, creates opportunities to connect to their peers, and helps to support and validate siblings’ feelings. The camp will also implement therapeutic activities through the use of art, music, and crafts.
By implementing fun and expressive activities we hope to build siblings a toolbox of emotional expression, coping, and other positive skills they may need to help build stronger relationships within their family and community. Kids will learn how to positively communicate their concerns and feelings to their parents and have a stronger bond with their sibling. Our goal is that our kids will leave with a better understanding of their brother or sister, as well as with the skills they need to positively interact and communicate their feelings. We understand that this is a critical time for all family members, especially young siblings. We hope that by offering support now, we can help shape and build positive family relationships for the future.
For more information on our SibCamps please call 512.732.8400 or click here to download a flyer.
