What about Me?

As a retired special needs teacher, I worked with many families with children with disabilities and was able to observe how siblings interacted. "What About Me?" hits the nail right on the head. Siegel describes several patterns siblings may fall into, including the 'parentified child,' the 'overachieving child,' the 'acting-out child,' and the 'withdrawn child,' among others. She points out characteristics parents can watch for, and ways to help children in each classification to better cope with the stresses of growing up with a sibling with a disability. Adult siblings will gain insights into their 'growing-up years' from reading this book, too.

At my local bookstore, this book literally fell off the shelf at my feet and I knelt down and picked it up. I knew instantly that I had to buy it. I cried when I read it because it reminded me of what it was like being a younger sister of a disabled sibling. Although it brought back a lot of memories and misplaced guilt that I have tried to overcome, the book gives good explanations as to some of the outcomes of growing up in this type of family and the dysfunctions that can occur. I would highly recommend this book and thank the authors for their contribution.