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Family members understand that we're all humans, constantly learning and growing. Conflict is handled in an appropriate and safe manner.
Children and other family members in a healthy family feel safe learning, growing, and making mistakes.
They have a healthy understanding of mistakes and understand that it won't challenge or threaten their security or safety. They know that love is unconditional.
Just like quality time, healthy communication seems simple, but it's important for proper family function.
Healthy families explore mistakes to understand and improve, instead of shaming their family members over those mistakes.
Members of healthy families communicate in a calm, respectful manner, in which they're safe to share differing feelings and experiences.
They serve as cheerleaders instead of competing with one another for the spotlight. These families also show physical affection by sharing hugs or handshakes, and expressing their genuine love.
Healthy families see conflict and disagreement as inevitable parts of living together. These difficult moments are dealt with in a calm, respectful way, allowing space for each person to both talk and listen.
When disagreements arise, they are called out and handled within a timely matter, rather than allowing tension and anger to escalate.
In healthy families, parents do most of the emotional work with their children by modeling empathy, self-control, and appropriate behaviors in response to emotions. The role of children is to learn.
Healthy families happily express gratitude for one another and share words of encouragement during difficult times.
Take a moment to reflect on your family history and if you can relate to these healthy characteristics. Often, people who experienced family trauma won't have these experiences. And do note that all the mentioned points don't have to exist together for a family to be healthy.
Sources: (Psychology Today) (Medium)
See also: Unlock your inner calm: quick and easy self-soothing techniques
All members are concerned with the health and well-being of others, but in an age-appropriate way.
Parents provide emotional care for the children, not the other way round. Also, other members seek to meet their other family members' needs.
Even if adults make the final decision, everyone is allowed to have an opinion. And all family members should respect and allow those opinions to be expressed, as long as they're respectful.
In a healthy family, every family member, including children, has privacy. This is understood and respected by everyone.
Children are still growing and learning, so a caregiver’s expectations of them shouldn't be the same as their expectations of adults.
In families where there is little room for differing opinions, it's common for children to grow into adults who don't know who they are. When you're always taught how and what to think, it's normal to not know how to do it for yourself.
All families have rules, but rules that are inconsistent or not age-appropriate create an environment of confusion and chaos.
Members of these families fulfill promises, defend each other, and honor one another’s role in the family.
In healthy families, individuals understand the health of the family as a whole is dependent on the health of each family member.
It's a shared sense of humor, joy, and lightness that helps families bounce back from difficult times.
Quality time is spent physically, emotionally, and mentally connected with your family. Healthy families are intentional about giving each other their undivided attention.
Whether baking cookies, playing games, or sharing a meal, healthy families enjoy one another’s company.
One of the major characteristics of a healthy family is that they want to be together. And they also enjoy one another.
Healthy families have traditions around holidays, birthdays, and milestones, as well as shared stories.
These traditions anchor the family to one another, and strengthen their bond. Traditions also provide each member with a purpose in the family.
When children grow up, they don't cut ties with their parents and grandparents. Instead, they still want to have them in their lives.
Healthy families laugh together and take delight in one another by not taking things too seriously.
While every family is different and unique, there are some common elements that contribute to a healthy family environment. From respecting different opinions to understating healthy boundaries, these are just some of the qualities that every strong family has. And while these may seem easy to identify, many of us are actually unaware of what makes a family healthy. And if we don't know what is healthy, it's difficult to identify what is unhealthy.
Click on to discover the common characteristics of healthy families.
Top characteristics of a healthy family
To understand what's unhealthy, it's important to define what's actually healthy
LIFESTYLE Relationships
While every family is different and unique, there are some common elements that contribute to a healthy family environment. From respecting different opinions to understating healthy boundaries, these are just some of the qualities that every strong family has. And while these may seem easy to identify, many of us are actually unaware of what makes a family healthy. And if we don't know what is healthy, it's difficult to identify what is unhealthy.
Click on to discover the common characteristics of healthy families.