You Grow Up Faster
When you get thrown into a tragic situation like this, your responsibilities grow significantly. You need to obtain and understand complex health information, you may face social isolation or feel deprived of the lifestyle you want, and sometimes you're forced to manage life and death situations.
If you have a severely ill loved one, you need to take care of yourself in ways your friends don't. You organize your own schedule as any adult would, and may help with caregiving responsibilities, grocery shopping, dinner preparations, laundry, and walking and feeding pets. This can generate satisfaction - independence is empowering - but it can also create jealousy and sadness. When it seems that other kids receive more attention and support from their parents (most notably both parents), and have fewer chores and more time to spend with friends, it can lead to a lot of inner conflict and resentment. These feelings can serve as warnings for more serious issues such as acute anger, violence, and depression that could arise if you don't talk to someone about them.
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