As an only child, I would like to share some of my thoughts and experiences about what it has been like. It certainly has its advantages and disadvantages.

Pros:

• I never had to deal with sibling rivalry growing up. I fought enough with my mother, so it was nice not having to worry about bickering with anyone else.
• I never had to share my room, my clothes, or my toys with anyone else.
• I never had to worry about who was the favorite among my parent’s because I was their one and only.
• As the only one, my parents attention was always focused on me.
• When I had sleepovers, my friends and I could enjoy ourselves without worrying about a sibling crashing the party.
• I didn’t have to worry about competing with anyone growing up, whether it be grades or other achievements.
• I got to have the house to myself a lot. As an introvert, the quiet alone time was very much appreciated.

Cons:

• I don’t get to experience that special bond that many siblings seem to have.
• I’ll never get to be an Aunt, unless I get married to someone with siblings. Even then, I won’t be biologically related.
• I never had someone that could stick up for me, particularly when I was heavily bullied in school. My friends had abandoned me and joined the bullies, and I was on my own.
• When my parents get sick, I will have the sole responsibility of taking care of them.
• When my parents die, I don’t have siblings that I can lean on for support. Likewise, I’ll likely be left to pay for and plan funeral/burial arrangements.
• I’m the only person who can give my mom a grandchild. Granted the decision to have children is solely up to me, but I know that she really wants to be a grandmother. I’m starting to worry it’s never going to happen, since I’m almost 29 and still single. I know I’ve still got time, but the thought that it might not be something that happens has crossed my mind. I had to see the sadness in my mother’s face when her fourth and final sibling announced that she was going to be a grandmother this year. My mom is the only one left, and it must be hard on her watching it happen for everyone else around her. It’s a big burden for me to carry just knowing that.
• To this day, I still don’t like to share. I blame that on never having to share growing up. I’ve been called stingy more than once, and it’s true.
• Some people think that if you’re an only child, you’re spoiled and have everything handed to you on a silver platter. That’s never been the case for me at all. Quite the contrary. In fact, one of the reasons my parents only had one child was because that was all they could afford.