incredible-marketing Arrow

How Can We Define Family on National Family Day?

On the 26th of September, people celebrate U.S. National Family Day. To celebrate, families spend time together, share a meal, bond, and express their appreciation for one another. It brings everyone together in a meaningful way.

For people with a fractured family of origin, however, family-oriented holidays like Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Siblings Day, and Family Day can cause stress. It can even create “little-t” trauma to see everyone celebrating and feel so disconnected. Fortunately, many other ways exist to define family, though. Let’s look at a few of them.

Adopted Family

People adopted into families often look for their family of origin. It’s natural to want to know where you come from. Still, sometimes where you currently are is more important. A family brought together through adoption is just as valid as any family of origin. The love that adopted parents hold for their children is immeasurable.

Parents who adopt choose to bring a child into their home permanently as a member of their family. They go through many steps before being approved for adoption. This takes a lot of effort and time. Then, they embrace a child as their own. The parents may offer their last name to the child, an important landmark for many adopted kids. Parents offer the child love and support to help their child heal from the trauma of adoption.

Blended Family

When one or more individuals in a marriage come into the relationship with children, it forms a blended family. These families can pose difficulties as everyone adjusts to parenting responsibilities and styles. These challenges don’t make the family any less rewarding, though.

Stepparents can offer so much love to their step-child. This bond is so strong that many stepparents and children don’t even use the preface “step” anymore. They either just use normal parental terms, or they use the term “bonus parent” and “bonus child” to signify that they are special to one another.

Chosen Family

For people with toxic upbringings or families that disowned them, chosen family is the most important relationship in their life. This form of family is common within the LGBTQ+ community. Rather than feeling rejected, a chosen family embraces each other for all their unique facets. Individuals offer each other kinship, mutual respect, and love. They bond on a deep level. Blood and genetics don’t matter in a chosen family. It’s beautiful and special to see people come together from all walks of life.

A family of origin with strained relationships can cause immense stress. In toxic family dynamics, trauma becomes the norm. Luckily, there are other ways to define family. Adopted families, blended families, and chosen families can all offer comfort and love. They can validate your experiences. This allows you to focus on healing your mental trauma wounds. At The Guest House, we can help you address traumatic family-of-origin relationships. Whether attending as an inpatient or outpatient, we offer holistic and traditional therapeutic modalities. To start healing, call us at (855) 483-7800.