Reply to Regret having one child or no siblings?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I grew up as an only child and socially I think I lost out. Without a sibling to tease me and teach me how to work through arguments, I often found social situations very challenging, anxiety inducing and I failed in them. In fact I'd say I failed in most social situations until now as an adult I just avoid them, unless they are brief and light.[/quote]

This is what I worry about for my child, who is an only.  He is improving in his ability to relate to other kids socially but my observation of most of his peers who have a sibling or two is that they are far more relaxed in social situations.     [/quote]

I wrote that. The counter-balance of course is that your child will be more likely to grow up independent, single-minded, fairly determined and driven in terms of his own path, less likely to compare himself to others. I know this has been the case for me and there was a really well written article in the NYTimes a few years ago which backed this up.

The thing is this, there are pros and cons to any sibling (or lack of) situation. Try not to focus on the good stuff. I'm sorry if I made you worry more.[/quote]

PPs, whether your children are onlies or not, sooner or later they will end up in a school-like setting with plenty of exposure to all facets of peer interaction. School-aged children rarely interact a lot; they tend to live in their own worlds, and parents are lucky to keep tabs on teens. Their social lives revolve around school friends and extracurriculars, not siblings. I think the best thing any parent can do (regardless of the number of children in the house) is provide plenty of opportunities to foster social connections. Seek help if it's needed etc.[/quote]

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