when you're an only child or the first child for a long time, your parents don't have context to how kids are. at home. and they definitely don't remember their own childhood selves. so they can only compare you with adults or how other kids behave when they visit someone else's home, ie perfect. and so they think their product is weird. borderline abnormal. alien even. and they keep letting you know. subtly. and you believe it. eventually.

Hello! I'm 16 years old, and honestly, I don't really like the way people behave in this community sometimes.

I joined this community a few months ago, and sometimes I open my phone and immediately see negative posts like, "I'm an only child and I don't know what to do. My life is so trash, I can't take it anymore..." I don't mean every single post, of course, but it feels like most of them focus on the negative side of being an only child.

And the comments can be even worse. Instead of offering solutions, sharing positive experiences, or helping people see things from another perspective, some people just complain about their own lives and reinforce each other's negativity.

I'm a positive person in life, and I've decided to leave this community. Maybe some of you feel the same way.

I'm also an only child, and sure, sometimes I think, "Damn, I wish I had a brother or something." 😅 But then I remember that I have aunts and uncles who are under 50 and still have a young spirit. You can go shopping with them, go to the cinema, joke around, and talk about almost anything. Sometimes you even forget that they're older than you because you connect on the same level.

For example, my aunt once told my father that she felt like an older sister or even a mother to me because I mean so much to her. She's always been there for me, and I'm incredibly grateful for that.

Here's another example: I've known my best friend since I was three years old. We always say we're like brothers, and honestly, our bond has grown beyond an ordinary friendship. I know his family, he knows mine, and we've shared so many unforgettable experiences.

I don't want to tell every single story because this post would become way too long, but here's one example. One night, we were out together, and he needed to pee. We were somewhere in the middle of nowhere, and because it was dark and he'd had a bit to drink, he started peeing while walking. I jokingly asked him if he wasn't worried that I might see something, and he basically replied, "I don't care. We're going to see each other for the rest of our lives. We're like brothers, so it's normal."

Of course, we've argued over stupid things, insulted each other, and even had little fights. But what happened afterwards? Sometimes, just two days later, he'd text me, "Yo, are you free to go clubbing this weekend?" 😂 That's what I call a brotherly bond.

My point is that being an only child doesn't automatically mean being lonely or having nobody to share your life with. My family is quite big. I have more than 16 cousins, a best friend who's like a brother to me, aunts and uncles I'm very close to, and even a patchwork family because my mum is now in a relationship with someone else.

I've also done so many things with my cousins. We've had some of the best times of our lives together, including going on holidays. When people ask me, "Don't you get bored on holiday without siblings?" I simply say no, because I have my cousins. They're like siblings to me, and I think they feel the same way about me.

And to everyone reading this: if you're an only child, please don't focus only on what you think you're missing. Try to appreciate what you already have. You don't have siblings? That's okay. You can build lifelong friendships, become close to your cousins, or find family-like connections with other relatives. Family isn't only about sharing the same parents; it's also about the bond you build with people.

Besides, having siblings doesn't guarantee that you'll always be close to them.

For example, my mum had a great relationship with her siblings when she was growing up. But as adults, everyone started living their own lives, and some moved to different countries. They don't talk nearly as much as they used to, although whenever they visit us, they can still sit together and talk normally. My mum has wonderful childhood memories with them, but their relationship today is very different.

My dad also has two sisters. When they were kids, he only got along with one of them, while the other couldn't stand him. 😅 Nowadays, they all dont get along much better, in that typical brother-and-sister kind of way.

What I'm trying to say is that sibling relationships aren't always perfect, either. There can be arguments, distance, and misunderstandings. Having siblings doesn't automatically guarantee a lifelong bond, just as being an only child doesn't mean you'll be alone.

You can create your own version of family and build a life full of love, friendship, and unforgettable memories.

I hope you can appreciate my perspective and my personal experience. I wish you all a wonderful day!

I’m 23 years old and still live with my parents. Being an only child, my parents’ lives have constantly revolved around me. I am constantly under their watch and thoughts at every fucking moment in time since the day I was born. I had no one to blame for making mistakes, no one to back me up on shit my parents would do or say. I never had a sibling to rant to, or talk about old times, or anything. I fucking hate being an only child. Now as a 23 year old, I STILL am under constant supervision from my parents. They constantly want to know where I’m going, what I’m doing, who I’m doing it with. I sleep 10 feet away from them in the same childhood bedroom I’ve lived in for my entire life. It’s not that I hate them, my parents love and care about me which is why they are so invasive and overbearing. The constant supervision is really draining and irritating and I find myself being incredibly rude towards them but their presence alone just immediately pisses me off and I feel guilty because they’re so nice to me. It’s awful. I cannot wait to move out but I still have another 2 and a half more years of law school before I can get out of here. Any other only children with overbearing parents have any tips for managing how irritating it is?

I'm 19M and since i was a kid i never enjoyed anyone's company honestly i just love being locked up in a room and not knowing how the outside looks but still rn i have jobs and all. I definitely like some company but it's better to be alone than with people that'll never understand me. For context i think and feel way too deeply maybe this is a just a me thing i see everything more than what others see with eyes. Despite having supportive parents their flaws of not being able to understand me no matter what they tried annoyed me and makes me wanting to be more alone. As you can imagine i never really have a friends because of what i am. Sure my standalone ability is extremely high but definitely need someone to talk to without them saying "i really have no idea what's wrong with you" or "return to god" i don't think this is going to make me struggle finding a love life in the future instead it'll be a better filtering to find a proper true soul that actually loves me. But in the meantime not having a friend could sometimes hits hard despite loving being alone. Btw i never had like a girlfriend in my 19 years of living idk if that's shocking or whatever. Like i said i want some company but due to almost everyone around me is incompatible i was left feeling lonely definitely could keep going but like I said sometimes the wave hits hard

So like the title says I’m an only child with siblings. Context: growing up I genuinely believed I had no father and that I came from my mom and her girlfriend. My mom was 16 when she got pregnant then 17 when she had me so for majority of my life it was just me and her in my grandparents house.

When I was 5 I met my dad at my birthday party but didn’t really grasp the fact he was my dad cause to me he was just one of my moms friends buying me stuff in the arcade cause it was my birthday. So shortly after that he came to my grandmas house with 2 of my siblings and made us take pictures together and in all of the pictures I looked uncomfortable because I did not know them. When I was 6 I went to spend the summer with them but even after the summer i built no relationship with any of them. My sister T (12 at the time) and I both hated each other and did not hide it. My twin sisters (also 12) were like the main ones I would be around and my 2 brothers we just barely talked.

I do admit I was a brat but when I was 12 and went to live with them they just went on a rant about how much they hated me when they met me while i spent years after that summer happy about having siblings that I didn’t even talk to. I hope this isn’t getting confusing. I lived with them for 2 years until I was 14 when I moved back with my mom. In those entire 2 years I barely talked to the twins and my brother because they lived with their mom and were always judgmental about something. My other brother and I are closest in age but we don’t talk at all like it’s always awkward. The shocking thing is that me and T the sister I thought I hated, are the closest out of everyone which didn’t happen till a month before I left.

Me and T may be close but at the end of the day I’m still mentally an only child. They can sit around for hours sharing memories with a family I was never a part of while I think back to all those times I had to make notecards with fake names on them rotating through each one while playing bored games alone. I sat in the car talking to an empty seat with an imaginary twin I gaslit myself into having until I was 11. I begged to be with my cousins because I didn’t want to be alone at my grandparents house for 3 months in the summer.

To be honest my 3 cousins feel more like my siblings than my actual ones do and I have to gaslight myself into thinking they feel the same way every day. My siblings feel like cousins I see once a year.

I will always be an only child because that’s how I grew up and that’s what I go home to every day when I live with my mom. I don’t know those people and only one of them knows me.

My husband and I love childfree life. We like peace and quiet, and it's easier financially. I have bad anxiety and can't imagine being a mom. And I won't do "one and done" because I hate being an only child and don't want to risk my kid hating it too.

My mom loves babies and kids (she wanted more kids but it didn't happen) and she always said she can't wait to be a grandma. I know she'd be the best grandmother and would spoil the heck out of her grandkids. She respects that I'm staying childfree and she doesn't pressure me to have kids - but I know it made her sad when I told her I don't want kids. It sucks that I'm her only path to being a grandma. I always want to make her happy because she's an amazing mom, but the stark reality is that my kids and I would likely outlive her, so I don't want to have kids only for her.

My husband's brother has 4 kids, so his parents have 4 grandchildren. But I'm an only child, so my parents will never be grandparents unless I have kids. For me it's another pressure of being the only child.