Support for siblings
As well as our main CHD2 WhatsApp group, we also run another group for siblings of people with CHD2. Since CHD2 has not been known about for long, the majority of diagnosed cases of CHD2 are in those who are children, teenagers or young adults. Our distinct WhatsApp sibling group is therefore one where the younger generation can talk about anything that affects them as a brother or sister of someone with CHD2.
The sibling group is run by Georgia, who has a brother with CHD2. The group is holding monthly meetings by Zoom or Teams where you can talk with other young people who have siblings with CHD2. To find out more about the meetings, please use the Contact form to get in touch with Georgia.
Georgia’s story is below:
“Hi, my name is Georgia, I am 26 years old. I have a younger Brother called Kauri. Kauri was diagnosed with CHD2 in 2018. There is 3 years between me and Kauri and we have always been close. Kauri has always been challenging even as a small child, though he is now 22.
“When I turned 18, I become an advocate for Kauri with my mum. I become an advocate as I wanted to understand and help him through his journey. When he was 14 Kauri went into Residential. This was hard for me as I missed him and always worried if he was happy. As a teenager I struggled keeping my bond strong with him, especially on his hard days where we didn’t get on.
“None of my friends had siblings like Kauri and I was never able to express my emotions to them as I felt they wouldn’t understand. I was very lucky that my mum and I were close and we would get things off our chest about how we felt.
“I always felt that there was no one else like Kauri as I hadn’t heard or met anyone like him. When my mum and I found the CHD2 group I was so happy to find people that understood how I felt. My role now is to give the support to people with siblings that have CHD2 and help them navigate their feelings and emotions that come with having a sibling with CHD2.
“This Group is only for the siblings (no parents allowed!). This is an open space for young people to express themselves. I would like to get to know you and understand what support I can help with. Whatever you discuss will be confidential. When I was younger I would have dreamed of a support group like this for every time I found things difficult with him and had no answers.”
To get in touch with Georgia or join the sibling group, please make a request through the Contact form.
For a simpler explanation of what CHD2 is, aimed at our younger members, please visit What is CHD2?
Websites
Sibs: for brothers and sisters of disabled children and adults.
www.sibs.org.uk