Who Makes the Best Oldest Friend?
I used to often keep unwell as a child. Born with diabetes, it didn’t take much to get my blood sugar bouncy. I’d just have to miss a meal or be slightly stressed to go unconscious and be rushed for emergency medical help ever so often. During every medical college exam, my sister waited outside my examination room on standby, just in case I got sick. She’d read a book, listen to music, or when bored, she’d sleep. But she was there. She’d give up anything to be there for me. The same sister who fought, argued, and even got into physical fights with me! I still think we’re opposite human beings. We didn’t, maybe even today we don’t see eye to eye on everything. Yet, looking back, I cannot imagine a more loving angel I could be blessed with through my rough childhood days. That emotion continues in my fourth decade of life, too.
If you have a sibling (or siblings), then no matter how it was between you all the while you were growing up (as many fights you had, or how many ever times you tried to strangulate each other while you were little!), your sibling was undoubtedly your first playmate, partner in a few (or many) crimes, and your best friend. Relationships between brothers and sisters in childhood are a grounding base for secure relationships in adulthood. Of course, if you’re the only child, you could still evolve and develop well because you might seek greater companionship with friends and other significant figures in your life. But sibling relationships are just distinctive. You get a readymade friend without even asking for one! The spice, zest, zing and bling siblings add to life are often unparalleled. No one knows how to push your buttons better or wipe your tears gentler than your sibling.

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Dr Shefali Batra is a Psychiatrist and Mindfulness Coach. Connect with her on Instagram @drshefalibatra and read more about her work at drshefalibatra.com.