Sibling Adjustment to Childhood Chronic Illness: An Integrative Review

Siblings of children with a chronic illness are among the close family members impacted by childhood chronic illness. Family roles, routines, and functioning are adjusted to fit the needs of the child and family throughout the course of the illness. Empirical articles regarding adjustment of healthy siblings of children with chronic illnesses ages 0 to 17 years, published in 2000 to 2019 were searched on PsycInfo, PubMed, and Medline using the keywords “sibling adjustment,” “sibling chronic,” and “sibling illness.” Through thematic synthesis, four broad topics emerged concerning sibling adjustment to chronic illness: (a) experiences, (b) psychosocial adjustment, (c) coping, and (d) communication. Implications for family nursing and family health practitioners and future research directions are presented.

Social Network Factors and Anxiety Among Adolescents With Type 1 Diabetes and Their Parents

Stressors generated by chronic illnesses in adolescents are experienced in the broader social context of their lives. The purpose of this study was to examine the social networks of 15 adolescents with type 1 diabetes and 25 parents and evaluate associations of social support and kinship type with state and trait anxiety. Social network data were collected through individual interviews. Participants completed self-reported measures of anxiety. Adolescents with lower anxiety had greater overlap with their parents’ networks and more network members with whom they would not share their feelings. Parents with increased anxiety had more network members who provide support for everyday stressors, or with whom they lose their temper. The type of support provided by biological and social kin differed for adolescents versus parents. Tailored interventions leveraging existing social networks could be a key mechanism for supporting family responses to stress-provoking situations in the context of childhood chronic illness.