{
  "id": 18225194,
  "title": "'They look right through us': Explaining the term 'glass child'",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/05/they-look-right-through-us-explaining-the-term-glass-child",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-11-05T01:58:47.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "ABC News AU",
    "slug": "abc-news-au",
    "url": "https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-11-05/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-glass-child/107344566"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Samantha Hellams, who has an intellectually disabled sister and is chair of Siblings Australia, has come to understand how her childhood was different from her peers due to her family's focus on her sister. The term \"glass child\" describes her experience, which has been popularised by Alicia Meneses Maples after her TEDx talk in 2010. The term refers to a person with a high-needs sibling and experiences trauma and neglect due to their parents' extensive care for the sibling. Marianne Webb, a senior research fellow at Orygen, acknowledges that while the term reflects some experiences of young carers, she does not use it herself. The term emphasizes the invisibility and overlooked needs of siblings in families with a disabled child. Young carers often take on significant responsibility, experience mental health risks, and may have positive outcomes like increased empathy and personal growth. Dr. Webb emphasizes the need for better support for families with disabled children, including providing parents with knowledge, skills, and resources, and ensuring siblings can access support services. Siblings often play a lifelong role in supporting disabled individuals, and society should recognize and support their role more.",
  "summary": "The term \"glass child\" doesn't resonate with everyone who has a sibling living with a chronic illness, mental illness or disability, but this is what it means.",
  "key_points": [
    "\"Glass child\" describes experience of high-needs sibling",
    "Refers to trauma and neglect due to extensive care",
    "Siblings often take on significant responsibility"
  ],
  "editors_take": "Labeling these siblings as glass children highlights the systemic neglect and emotional trauma experienced by children whose needs are overlooked while their parents focus on high-needs family members.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}