'Who Listens to the Listener, Who Cares for the Carer?' A Cross-Sectional Study of Social Connectedness and Sleep Experiences of Young Siblings of Neurodivergent People.

The study used a short online survey with brief answers, so it did not capture the depth of experience that interviews would have provided. The sample was recruited through charities and social media, which may mean participants were already connected to support networks or had more severe family situations than the general population. Participants relied on self-report, so their accounts of their sibling's sleep and their own feelings may not be accurate due to social desirability or memory bias. The study did not record when siblings started taking on caring responsibilities, so it is unclear how early exposure to these duties affects their mental health.

The authors partnered with two charities, Sibs and The Sleep Charity. Staff from these organisations, who are also experts by experience, joined as co-researchers and contributed to the study design and interpretation. The first author had prior discussions with these charities on supporting siblings.

Do not assume that the high rate of sleep problems reported by siblings is caused by their disabled sibling's night-time behaviours. The study found that for most participants, sleep issues were driven by anxiety and worry about the future, not by being physically woken up.