Healthy Family Characteristics:
(From Karen's Book: Healing from the Trauma of Childhood Sexual Abuse: The Journey for Women)

• Define, teach, and respect each other's boundaries.
• Talk and share openly with each other.
• Do not tease and cause intentional pain to other family members.
• Understand that good humor is shared. They are able to laugh at situations and not at each other.
• Express anger and disagreement without losing control or acting in a defensive manner. Respect individual feelings and welcome the sharing of emotions without labeling what someone else is feeling.
• Do not intrude on one another.
• Delight in each other's differences while sharing the common bond of being in a family with a shared history.
• Trust each other. They realize that when trust is broken that amends need to be made for trust to be regained.
• Apologize and take responsibility for their behavior.
• Share in the responsibilities of the family. Each member joins in and shares appropriate household duties.
• Have parents who teach and model what being in a healthy family means.
• Show courtesy to each other.
• Have parents who grow in their own development as adults.
• Recognize what children need in order to grow in self-esteem and self-confidence.
• Devote time to play and fun. They recognize that leisure and hobbies are important for individual growth.
• Show flexibility and consistency rather than adhering to arbitrary and authoritarian rules.
• Seek and are open to new information. They are not threatened by change or new ideas.
• Teach morals and values. They do so without judging and condemning each other or other people.
• Share their spirituality and enhance each other's growth as spiritual people who believe in a divine influence in their lives.
• Develop and practice positive and meaningful traditions that are passed onto each generation.
• Respect privacy and model behavior that affirms the right to privacy in the home.
• Help each other in a supportive and caring manner.
• Admit to problems and seek help to solve problems when needed.
• Promote outside friendships.
• Strike a balance between joyful work and relaxing leisure.
• Compliment each other and affirm the uniqueness of each family member.
• Allow natural consequences to occur that teach through life experiences.
• Do not punish in a harsh and destructive manner.
• Seek new opportunities to promote diversity among the family members.