Communication in Families

I believe that communication in families is the most crucial part of building a tight-knit family. The guidelines for effective communication in families according to Wood (2007) include: maintaining equity in family relationships, making daily choices to enhance intimacy, show respect and consideration, and not sweating the small stuff. I believe that some of these are important, but I know in my family we only use a few of these concepts. We show a lot of respect and consideration for each other as well as not sweating the small stuff. In our family we are completely open and we all know everything about each other. To some people on the outside they probably think it might be excessive, but I am happy to say that my mom, sister, and brother are my best friends. Communication in families is something that should be the building block to every family, but I feel and see in everyday life that it is almost rare to come across. I feel very fortunate to have a mother that made the lines of communication completely open, and made us the close family that we are. The concept of communication in families and relating it to my family shows some similarities, but there are differences as well. I think that every family is different and not one family lives by textual guidelines, and this is the way it should be.