Is blood thicker than water?

The topic of family matters is ongoing. Some may have heard of the saying “blood is thicker than water.” Though not every translation of the meaning is the same, one common meaning  is that family over rules all. No matter what happens, your family comes before everyone and everything else. This can be true for some and can be controversial for others.What is your stance?

Often times if people are coming to the office it may be because of some family “problem” that is causing distress. For some, family is a source of primary support that is unconditional and ever present. For others, this is not the case at all. And for many, familial relationships are somewhere in between. Some family members are nice and some are naughty.  Typically, it is easier to be nice to people if they are nice to you. Consider this…

You have an uncle who is always in a bad mood and makes statements that are often times offensive. Do you…

1. Take the hit, after all he is family?

2. Keep your distance because you’re sick of the comments?

3. Tell him exactly what you think about his statements and him (tactful or not)?

4. Talk behind his back to other family members who understand?

5. Something else?

Whatever your response, it says a lot about what is important to you and what you value. If you respond in the first manner, family may be important to you and you may be a part of the described unconditional support, referenced above. If you take the second approach, you may not have the same unconditional stance. For the third option, you may be similar to the second person, dependent upon delivery but could also just value being honest with people in general. The fourth approach may denote that you value family and may be frustrated, but want to keep family issues internal.

The answer to these questions is highly personal. Knowing what is important to you can help you better facilitate decision making. Sometimes we make decisions based on societal views or views of others that we have internalized over time. Lots of times, we don’t even recognize we are doing this and may just feel blah for some reason. These scenarios can create questioning of ourselves or just discomfort in general about how things are going.

Sometimes how we respond to situations (or don’t respond for that matter), can impact how we function on a daily basis. Sometimes distress experienced can impact our mood and level of effort it takes to complete responsibilities. If this is true for you, you can reach out to get feedback to help with this temporary issue. Or, sometimes distress is more longstanding and can require more, in which help can also be beneficial.

Whatever your case, knowing what is important to you is important! Only you can decide what is true for you.We can provide you with needed support/services to navigate through your situation. Just ask! So…is blood thicker than water? You tell us!