FINDÂ STRENGTH IN FAMILY
The Benefits of Knowing Our Family Stories
"Stories have to be told or they die, and when they die, we can't remember who we are or why we're here." - Sue Monk Kidd
1. Micro-Level: Shared family experiences teach children how to understand their own experiences.
2. Exo-Level: Stories from parents or other family members outside the child's experience. Teaches the child about the world and their place in it, helps to create shared values and belief systems within the family and introduces the idea of self outside the family.
3. Macro-Level. Family history stories are more embedded in cultural and world views and values.
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This article from The National Library of Medicine explores building family story telling skills, including how to tell about family trauma in a therapeutic way.
FAMILY MEDICAL HISTORY
Going through family history can inform us on genetic prevalence of various medical issues in our DNA.
Pictured: Our great grandfather who was a hunchback. His paternal aunt also had a spinal issue that crippled her from childhood.
BUILD RESEARCH SKILLS
Researching family history can build skills in:
- Identifying types of documentation
- Database research
- Interviewing skills
- Learning to read cursive writing in an age of print
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Let's be honest, it can also make you feel like a private detective! You never know where research will take you.
Most of us have ancestors peppered throughout major events in history. From world wars to immigration, we can trace our roots through history and gather personal stories beyond drab dates and figures.
EXPANDEDÂ PERSONAL IDENTITY
What does it feel like to walk into a graveyard and see three generations of your ancestors buried there? The family tradition of lighting candles at Christmas links your great grandmother in Denmark. Your fight and joie de vivre link you to your great grandmother who survived a genocide. The experiences of our ancestors can directly impact their posterity for generations.
PSYCHOLOGICAL WELLBEING
- Feelings of belonging
- Greater meaning and satisfaction in life
Stories about overcoming hardship lead to:
- Improved self-esteem
- Increased self-mastery during aging
- Pragmatism, coming to grips with both good and bad aspects of life
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INTELLECTUAL IMPROVEMENT
Thinking about a family history story, whether positive or negative, for five minutes before testing, increased academic performance.
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RESILIENCE
Knowing your family stories allows you to better resist illness, cope with adversity and recover quicker because you are able to maintain a positive attitude and manage your stress effectively.
FAMILY SECRETS AND SURVIVAL
Dr. Judith Landau has pioneered studies showing how family secrets about trauma are linked to multi-generational family addiction. In order to break the cycle of addiction, the secret must be brought to light and incorporated into the family story with a healing mindset.
Videos About Transitional Family Therapy and the Strength of Family Stories
Here you can download the presentation from the Family Discovery Day Fair 2023.
A video of the presentation is on our Genealogy Tutorials page.
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What Stories Matter When Writing a Family History
Presenter: Araxie Jensen
Knowing family history brings amazing emotional and cognitive benefits, but what stories should you include in your family history? Studies have found it's the hard stories that bring the most benefits. How do you approach telling those hard stories people might rather forget? What can a family history be? We'll also discuss these questions as well as publication choices: Print or ebook? Amazon, Office Max or a local press?