You may not think that learning about your family is that important. But there are a lot of benefits to knowing about your family history.
From giving you a new sense of identity, to having a better knowledge of your family’s medical history – you can benefit in so many different ways from digging deeper into your family tree.
If you’re unsure whether it’s worth doing and the best ways to get started, read on to find out more.
1) Give You a Sense of Identity
Nothing is more eye-opening than learning about who you are and where exactly you have come from.
Learning about your ancestors, embracing your culture, and understanding where you came from can open your eyes to how beautiful and unique you are and what makes you you.
It can also give you a perception of belonging and even a new feeling of purpose.
2) Makes You More Resilient
Do you really know about any of the struggles your grandparents and their grandparents experienced?
Knowing about the battles your family may have suffered will give you the strength and confidence to know that you can get through anything. Just like them!
3) Get to Know Your Family On a Deeper Level
Most importantly it will also give you the time to really get to know your family and who they are as people.
They will be able to tell you all of their wonderful stories throughout their life - the good and the bad - which can be a great bonding experience.
4) Increase Your Compassion
Unfortunately, you may have found yourself in a position where you’ve not been as close to your family as you’d have liked to be throughout your life.
Or you may think that your mum is overly ‘tight’ with money and may be sick of being nagged about how to look after your money.
Either way, understanding where exactly your family members have come from and what they have been through can hugely increase your compassion for them and also help you to appreciate why they may act or behave in certain ways.
5) Better Knowledge of Medical Conditions
Knowing the health and any medical conditions of your family members can be really important for yourself and for your own future generations.
If there are any hereditary conditions you know about or if multiple family members have experienced the same medical issues, then it can help you look after your own health better and prevent any of the same problems.
What Are the Most Effective & Affordable Ways to Research My Family Tree?
Speak to Family Members
First and foremost, of course, one of the easiest and most reliable ways to find out your family history is to speak to your family members!
If you’re lucky enough to still have your grandparents with you, then they will likely love nothing more than to spend hours and hours chatting through the family tree and reminiscing about the ‘good ol’ days’ with you.
They may not have all the answers for you. But they should certainly be able to point you in the right direction and give you a little extra information to help you join the dots.
Look At National Archives
The National Archives is an online platform where you can access historical documents.
This can include military service records; details of births, marriages and deaths; census records and much more.
It is completely free to use and most of the records are open for anyone to see online.
Social Media Platforms
Ok, so it’s highly unlikely that you’re going to find your ancestors on Facebook, but you could well find some of your distant relatives!
Facebook and other similar social media platforms are a great way to find cousins that you didn’t know you had. You can even find various groups dedicated to genealogy.
And best of all, it’s absolutely free to use!
Use Online DNA Testing Website
Most people will be somewhat familiar with websites such as Ancestry and Living DNA.
Both offer a free trial whereby you can add some of your family tree and then they will search their records for other family members to add which can be a great and quick way to watch your family tree grow and explore new relatives.
For something much more detailed, you can even buy DNA packages to help you discover much more about your heritage and maybe even connect with other living relatives.
You will have to pay for tests like this and subscribe to their platform. However, we often have some amazing discount codes for them so be sure to check out those first!
