How to Convince Your Parents That Your Younger Siblings Are Not Always Well Behaved
Start behaving., Pick your battles., Be a noncombatant., Act infuriatingly nice., Stand up for yourself clearly and non-aggressively if your sibling continues., Leave if you have to., Be assertive if your siblings lie about your actions., Be...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Start behaving.
If you have a history of lying or hitting your siblings right back, your parents are likely to treat your words with a little suspicion.
Work on being more respectful and mature, and your parents will begin trusting you more. -
Step 2: Pick your battles.
If your parents see you constantly pointing out things that your siblings can get away with, they will think that you are simply jealous. , Avoid engaging in conflict.
If your siblings start picking fights, ignore them or give short responses (e.g. "No thanks" or "Not now").
It will be difficult for your parents to blame you when you clearly aren't contributing anything to the conflict.
It may be tempting to call them names or slap them right back, but you'll probably get in trouble because you're bigger than them.
Avoid giving in; remain calm and respectful. , If your brother says your face is ugly, reply with "Thank you! I like your shirt." This will either make your sister or brother give up in frustration after a few unsuccessful tries, or it'll show your parents that you are making an effort not to bicker. , A firm "Please stop" or "That hurts" makes your point clear.
There's no way for your sibling to continue bugging you without acting like a total jerk.
When your parents hear the story, they'll side with you. , If you start getting really mad, leave before you end up doing something that gets you in trouble.
Make an excuse.
Take some time to relax and go to a quiet place where you can calm down.
You have the right to be alone when you need it most, and if your sibling doesn't respect that, find a parent and explain what's happening.
Try one of these phrases: "I'm stressed and I need to be alone." "Please let me be." "I need quiet time."
Take a deep breath, and say "That's not what happened." State the truth as plainly as you can.
There's no need to complain about how horribly your sibling behaved; the facts will speak for themselves.
Here are examples of phrases you could use to assert yourself: "I don't know why he's crying.
I didn't hit him." "Actually, I was dancing to music in my room.
I don't know what happened to the cookie jar." "No, I didn't attack her.
Jessi jumped at me and I pushed her away.
I'm very sorry that she's hurt, but I didn't do it on purpose."
Find a quiet time, when your parent is ready to listen.
Use "I" language to describe what your sibling does, and focus on how it makes you feel.
Ask your parents for advice in dealing with this situation.
This will let your parents know that your siblings actions are upsetting you (so they may keep a closer eye out), and you can take their advice for handling the problem better. "Sometimes Ryan hides the remote right before my favorite show comes on.
It makes me feel really frustrated and disappointed because I can't watch my favorite show if I don't know where the remote is.
What should I do when this happens?" "Mom, I need to talk to you about a problem.
Sometimes, when you're not there, Aiyana calls me stupid because of my learning disability, and asking me to count her fingers in a very sarcastic tone of voice.
It hurts my feelings a lot.
Do you have any advice about how I can handle it?" "I need to raise an issue with you about my brother.
He always states that I'm never interested in doing activities with him, and he always says that I expect him to choose, even though I have suggested activities to him several times but he doesn't like any of my ideas.
I don't like it when he turns down all my ideas then goes lying to you guys about it, and it makes me feel as if I'm no fun.
He also can make very sarcastic comments whenever I try to make a point, and I don't appreciate that.
Do you have any advice on how I should handle this situation?" -
Step 3: Be a noncombatant.
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Step 4: Act infuriatingly nice.
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Step 5: Stand up for yourself clearly and non-aggressively if your sibling continues.
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Step 6: Leave if you have to.
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Step 7: Be assertive if your siblings lie about your actions.
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Step 8: Be straight with your parents.
Detailed Guide
If you have a history of lying or hitting your siblings right back, your parents are likely to treat your words with a little suspicion.
Work on being more respectful and mature, and your parents will begin trusting you more.
If your parents see you constantly pointing out things that your siblings can get away with, they will think that you are simply jealous. , Avoid engaging in conflict.
If your siblings start picking fights, ignore them or give short responses (e.g. "No thanks" or "Not now").
It will be difficult for your parents to blame you when you clearly aren't contributing anything to the conflict.
It may be tempting to call them names or slap them right back, but you'll probably get in trouble because you're bigger than them.
Avoid giving in; remain calm and respectful. , If your brother says your face is ugly, reply with "Thank you! I like your shirt." This will either make your sister or brother give up in frustration after a few unsuccessful tries, or it'll show your parents that you are making an effort not to bicker. , A firm "Please stop" or "That hurts" makes your point clear.
There's no way for your sibling to continue bugging you without acting like a total jerk.
When your parents hear the story, they'll side with you. , If you start getting really mad, leave before you end up doing something that gets you in trouble.
Make an excuse.
Take some time to relax and go to a quiet place where you can calm down.
You have the right to be alone when you need it most, and if your sibling doesn't respect that, find a parent and explain what's happening.
Try one of these phrases: "I'm stressed and I need to be alone." "Please let me be." "I need quiet time."
Take a deep breath, and say "That's not what happened." State the truth as plainly as you can.
There's no need to complain about how horribly your sibling behaved; the facts will speak for themselves.
Here are examples of phrases you could use to assert yourself: "I don't know why he's crying.
I didn't hit him." "Actually, I was dancing to music in my room.
I don't know what happened to the cookie jar." "No, I didn't attack her.
Jessi jumped at me and I pushed her away.
I'm very sorry that she's hurt, but I didn't do it on purpose."
Find a quiet time, when your parent is ready to listen.
Use "I" language to describe what your sibling does, and focus on how it makes you feel.
Ask your parents for advice in dealing with this situation.
This will let your parents know that your siblings actions are upsetting you (so they may keep a closer eye out), and you can take their advice for handling the problem better. "Sometimes Ryan hides the remote right before my favorite show comes on.
It makes me feel really frustrated and disappointed because I can't watch my favorite show if I don't know where the remote is.
What should I do when this happens?" "Mom, I need to talk to you about a problem.
Sometimes, when you're not there, Aiyana calls me stupid because of my learning disability, and asking me to count her fingers in a very sarcastic tone of voice.
It hurts my feelings a lot.
Do you have any advice about how I can handle it?" "I need to raise an issue with you about my brother.
He always states that I'm never interested in doing activities with him, and he always says that I expect him to choose, even though I have suggested activities to him several times but he doesn't like any of my ideas.
I don't like it when he turns down all my ideas then goes lying to you guys about it, and it makes me feel as if I'm no fun.
He also can make very sarcastic comments whenever I try to make a point, and I don't appreciate that.
Do you have any advice on how I should handle this situation?"
About the Author
Justin Cooper
Brings years of experience writing about organization and related subjects.
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