In this episode, Jenny addresses the following question: “How do I deal with my distant adult brother, who cuts off from our family at the first hint of any tension?” Jenny notes how helpful it is to see the perspective over time– that is the backdrop of the current challenge. This family has a history of significant loss and adversity. Jenny locates the challenge within relationship triangles and explores ways to operate more from themself as a sister than from their alliance with their mother.

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About the Managing Challenging Relationships series:

In this Podcast series, Dr Jenny Brown responds to written requests to share her thinking about a tricky relationship challenge. She draws from her understanding of Bowen family systems theory to shed light on especially challenging relationship situations. She provides some ideas to make sense of the issue and draws from her clinical experience to describe a real-life example of dealing with a similar dynamic.

Note: Some details of questions have been changed for protecting privacy.