Whether you are busy all the time with work, have a physical or mental illness that makes you less present, or you have problems within your family that cause you to be more distant from them than you would like, having any kind of rift within your family structure can be stressful, difficult, and sad.
For many people, the trauma of not being able to have a close relationship with any family members is a lot to bear and can send them into a downward spiral. Luckily, if you are having issues with your familial relationships and would like to resolve them, you will be happy to know that this is very much possible.
Don’t wait until you reach retirement age to mend those relationships. Create meaningful and long-lasting bonds with your family members now or as soon as possible. Here are 3 tips to become more involved with your family.
Be The Bigger Person
If you have had any sort of “falling out” with a family member and you both have simply stopped communicating with each other, it can be really hard to make the decision to be the first one to reach out. That being said, it is petty to continue perpetuating the rift between you. Be the bigger person and refuse to allow whatever small disagreement you had to ruin your familial ties.
You share blood, after all! Don’t be afraid to be the first to reach out even if it’s a family member you haven’t heard from in a long time.
Make An Effort
Just like friendships, sometimes familial relationships fall apart and become non-existent just because of lack of effort from one or both parties. Even if some members of your family seem to not put any effort into seeing you, talking to you, or staying connected to you – it is important to try not to take this personally.
Remember that everyone has a lot going on in their lives and your family member most likely would love to connect with you more but just may be afraid to be the first to reach out. They also probably have a busy schedule which can make things more challenging.
Make an effort yourself by reaching out to make plans or just to talk. You will be able to tell if they are happy to hear from you or not (and most likely they will be!)
Show Up To Family Functions
Family functions are not always the most fun. A lot of people dread going to family gatherings such as birthdays, reunions, graduations, or Thanksgiving. These types of events are a great way to stay connected to and involved with your family though, so sometimes it’s worth it to just show up! Even if you only stay for a short time, it will make an impression and mean the world to certain members of your family.
Families are complicated and so are all of the intricate relationships within them. Of course, some familial relationships are not worth salvaging and it’s always best to look out for yourself. But if you would really like to be a little more involved within your family unit, hopefully these tips can help you with that!
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