Perhaps at some times of the year more than others we can be acutely aware of the differences in our families. When these differences are hard for us, we may have to find creative ways to cope, changing the subject, practicing non-reactivity, making requests, expressing boundaries. Sometimes we may need to disconnect altogether in different ways and for different periods of time, for an hour, to go sleep at a hotel on visits home, getting off the phone when we're tapped out, and sometimes without a clear end in sight. What's something that helps you cope with family differences?
[image description: Two hearts stand facing each other with frustrated facial expressions and symbols of expletives popping above their heads. Each heart is holding a thought bubble and pointing to it. One through bubble shows a picture of the earth as flat, and the other thought bubbled contains a round globe for the earth. Text reads: "This is a family."]