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...are you glad that you are an only child or do you wish that you had siblings? Did your parents choose to have one child, or were there other reasons? How many children do you have? If you do not have children, do you plan to have any, and if so, how many? And why?
I am asking this because two of my closest friends are only children. One loved it. The other hated it. I spoke to both of them recently.
There have also been several threads about siblings lately. This led me to wonder about those of you who have no siblings. What were the pros? What were the cons?
Im an only child (35) and I only have one child (11). I wanted a sibling when I was younger, but now it doesnt bother me too much. Especially during the Summer. Lots of siblings arent even close. My child wanted a sibling, but it never happened for us.
I have two cousins who are only children. In neither case could the parents have a second child; they wanted another, but it didn't work out. In both cases, the kids bonded with a really close friend in the neighborhood/schoolmate, with whom they were friends until everyone went off to college. I can tell you in one case, though, if there had been a younger sibling, that sibling probably would have been bullied. The other only child was a very nice and kind person, so there wouldn't have been issues.
Im an only child (35) and I only have one child (11). I wanted a sibling when I was younger, but now it doesnt bother me too much. Especially during the Summer. Lots of siblings arent even close. My child wanted a sibling, but it never happened for us.
I may as well of been an only child. My half sister ( different dad) is 9 years older than me and was out of the house when i was very young. I think that's why i dont share well. Never had to bother with anyone else.
I definitely see the advantages of being an only child, but I do wish I had siblings. My parents both were only children, mom passed away unexpectedly last fall, and now my family is SO small. It's one reason I myself had three children.
Nah...not at this point. We just moved to the beach and we are more interested in travel and just enjoying life. Don't want to start over with babies, but if it happened, it would be a nice surprise.
I'm an only child, and I HATED it. Evenings in my parents' home were so lonely! I had nobody to play a game with or even talk to. To make matters worse, my parents were very strict, and I was the sole outlet for their expectations, like getting perfect grades in school. It did me a disservice: I had little experience interacting closely with peers/equals, just authority figures. I had friends in my neighborhood and in my classes, but it's not the same! They all had their own lives, so it's not like I could expect them to play with me anytime I was up for something (a board game, a one-on-one sports game, a video game). I begged my parents to have a second child (or two, or three), but without success. By high school, I had more freedom, and was usually out with my friends a lot evenings, anyway, not coming home until fairly close to bedtime.
As a result, I didn't learn to assert myself with peers until I was a teen. Although honestly, I didn't have many run-ins with bullying, except in middle school grades. Just some nuisance teasing here or there, like a neighbor's barking dog. I'd throw away my soul to have had a same-age sibling while growing up.
As a result of my childhood experiences, I vowed to never have kids of my own. And now, at my age (35), there just isn't enough time to create a huge, happy, bustling family, with lots of kids, where there's never a dull moment, that I wished for as a child.
Last edited by MillennialUrbanist; 06-30-2018 at 08:44 AM..
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