Dysfunctional Family

Now there’s a heading that defines tautology. Personally I’ve never seen the need to pre-empt anything to do with ‘family’ with ‘dysfunctional’. It’s a given.  Over the last few weeks, various girlfriends have bemoaned their unhelpful mothers, their uncommunicative siblings, their thoughtless in-laws and other assorted unsympathetic relatives. It seriously sounds like the same script, just different players.

Of course, I’m no exception. As a Mother Who Works, it’s not unusual for new acquaintances to enquire if I have extensive family support. Ha! Discussing my extended family’s interactions would require a whiteboard, some coloured pens, a variety of charts and diagrams and a series of long, tedious workshops.

What is it with relatives? I once had a client who felt they’d crossed the line and actually apologised for talking to me ‘like we were related!’ Says it all really, doesn’t it? There are no platitudes among those who share blood; it’s straight for the jugular with remarks delivering the surprising sting of a nasty paper cut.

Small wonder that I’ve gathered around me a happy group I describe as ‘the relatives who aren’t related.’ They really are the perfect kind – polite but honest, reliable but not dependant, caring but not cloying.

How are your rels? Go on – challenge my theory! Someone out there must dispute this…or confirm ?!