Thicker Than Water: Essays by Adult Siblings of People with Disabilities

I am an adult sibling. I've met other adult siblings. I've run sibshops. I've worked in the disability field for years. And still, this book amazed me at how it spoke directly to me. Other adult sibs whose siblings have completely different disabilities, and we had the same situations to deal with. I am so glad to have read this book. I purchased a second copy for a good friend who is also an adult sib. We're both passing our copies on to other people as well. A great read.

as a sibling who just drove 5 hours north to spend a day with my sister with cerebral palsy, and then 5 hours home to spend Father's Day with my "immediate" family -- I can relate to all of these essays on family stress and guilt and what should I do questions... All of us are the same even tho all of us have different siblings and situations. We are WHO WE ARE because of our siblings with a disability. We are more sensitive to the world around us, yet we are tougher at times, we are loving parents, but scared to even BE parents, we are mad at our parents for not giving us enough time and attention, but we are the main helpers to our parents. These essays are well written, and show the sibling relationships in all dimensions. Buy this book for yourself if you are a sibling to a person with a disability, or or your local school system, or for a fried who has "Normal" (haha) kids along with a kid with a disbility -- even if (especially if...) that parent/friend says their children are all treated the same.

Thicker Than Water was recommended to me by my daughter. Her brother (my son) has Down's Syndrome and just celebrated his 40th birthday. I believe this book should be read by every family with a member who is disabled and with every care giver and agency providing services. It has heart warming as well as sad stories. The perspective of siblings is one we all should understand and accept. My daughter summed the difference with parents and siblings in 4 words: parents want health and safety issues met first; and siblings strive for independence and self-advocacy for their brothers and sisters. This is a MUST READ. My thanks and gratitude to all the authors and especially to Don Meyer for compiling the stories.

If you are a sibling of someone with a disability, this book will spell out words straight from your soul. Here people have written about the most pertinent issues in their sibling-lives, having teased out the questions, offered some tentative answers, but still let their insecurities and their further questions shine through. The authors in this book have written with love and compassion, but also with doubt and fear - and so their words ring true with those who have felt feelings of a similar kind to theirs. As a sibling of someone with a disability myself, I saw notes of myself throughout the essays in this book... every few pages something would ring pertinent and true. Read this book if you are a sibling, and you will feel recognized and validated. Read this book if you just want to know about siblings of people with disabilities too, because there is so much scope for learning about a multitude of issues within it. Through such a variety of different types of relationships, disabilities, lifestyles and situations, this book gives a look at sibling issues from the inside, and in siblings' own words.

Don Meyer has done it again with this beautiful and poignant book featuring essays written by people who have experienced and are still experiencing life as a sibling of someone who is developmentally and/or physically disabled. This population is largely underserved in that the focus of this type of family is usually on the disabled child. Siblings can be forgotten or invisible because they are considered "normal." Many of the essays deal with what happens when mom and dad are gone and there is a disabled sibling who needs care and the challenges that adult sibs face when confronted with these issues. Every one of these authors is to be commended for their courage and honesty in writing these essays. Those of us who are or have been non-disabled siblings can relate to all of these stories regardless of our own experience. Buy two copies - one for yourself and one to give as a gift to a sibling of someone who is disabled. I'm sure you know one -- people with disabilities are the largest minority group -- and most of them have siblings. I loved this book!