Family-Oriented and Individual-Oriented Lived Experiences in the Narrative Descriptions of Sibling Dyads with Parents Diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder

This study examined how sibling dyads in families with a parent diagnosed with bipolar disorder navigate shared adversity and develop interconnected lived experience orientations toward parental mental illness. A qualitative secondary analysis of narrative inquiry data was conducted using semi-structured interviews with four sibling dyads (seven females and one male, aged 20-32). Guided by narrative inquiry principles and the SHARE framework, the analysis examined seven dimensions: life focus, emotions toward family, coping with parental mental illness, supporting family, perceived gains and losses, perceptions of siblings, and perceptions of sibling relationships. Two interrelated orientations were identified. Family-oriented experiences involved emotional closeness, caregiving engagement, and active illness management, whereas individual-oriented experiences emphasized autonomy, self-protection, and career development, often expressed through financial or practical support. Across families, siblings assumed complementary roles and dynamically negotiated closeness and distance to sustain family balance and personal adaptation, reflecting an interplay between emotional connection and independence. These findings underscore the importance of assessing sibling dynamics in psychiatric settings, particularly how differentiated orientations shape caregiving roles, emotional regulation, and relational boundaries among adult children of parents with bipolar disorder. They further suggest that family-centered psychoeducation should address sibling-specific roles to support adaptive communication and role negotiation. For mental health nurses, integrating sibling- and family-oriented perspectives into assessment and care planning may facilitate more relationally attuned, developmentally sensitive support. By foregrounding sibling dyads as an underexamined unit of analysis, this study advances nursing practice and identifies directions for future sibling-focused research across diverse family and cultural contexts.