A 5-year-old sibling of a 9-year-old child with cystic fibrosis tells the nurse, "I wish I had a breathing disease, too." The nurse knows the parents strive to spend quality time with each child and with both children together

Question

What is the sibling currently experiencing?
1. Jealousy
2. Isolation
3. Loneliness
4. Anger

Answer 1

Correct Answer: 1
Rationale: The child with cystic fibrosis has something the younger child does not have. Cystic fibrosis brings the affected child more attention from others. Even if parents strive to spend more time with siblings of ill children, the well child will be jealous because the situation can never be equal. The 5-year-old child does not understand the complications of the disease and only sees the 9-year-old child treated differently. Siblings of ill children may experience loneliness, isolation, or anger; but the child's comment does not support these feelings.