Middle children can easily feel ignored and overlooked. This posts shares tips to help your middle child feel loved.
Kaitlyn is my middle child. But in some ways, I have no middle child. She is the oldest girl and therefore the “functional oldest.” Despite that, I often see things happening to her that are so stereotypically middle-child-esq.
Sometimes I really can get stressed out about the middle child thing. I think about how I don’t want Kaitlyn to feel ignored, neglected, or looked over. I am old enough to be intimate with Jan Brady and her frustrations over Marsha.
But then I think about how middle children are often the most well-adjusted adults. They are relaxed, easy-going, and sociable. So then I wonder if I should worry about it or not…maybe I should just let her be a “middle child.”
Tips to Help Your Middle Child
I think Kevin Leman has some great ideas in his birth order book.
The basic point he makes is to make an effort to ensure your middle child feels special and important in the family. I think that is great advice.
Let the middle child have an opinion in family decisions. Have some special traditions you do with just you and that child. Make time for special one-on-one time with your middle child.
Make sure your child gets clothes that are not hand-me-downs sometimes. If you can’t afford to do otherwise, you could look for ideas on re-purposing clothing on many craft blogs online.
For McKenna (my third child and second daughter), I buy her a new outfit at her birthday and other special occasions. I am of course not going to buy her a brand new wardrobe, but a few shirts here and there are doable.
Listen to your child when she talks to you.
Also, Leman suggests you have a fair share of photos of your middle child, and also photos alone.
Most of all, make sure home is a more safe and forgiving place than the outside world. You want your child to turn to her family in times of trouble, not the outside world.
I think these are great ideas, and equally applicable to oldest and youngest children as well. The thing about the oldest and youngest, though, is they won’t usually let you get away with not giving them these things. Middle children will be quiet about it.
If ever you worry about your middle child, you might appreciate this quote from Leman,
“The more I counsel, the more I realize that being squeezed a little while you are growing up isn’t necessarily all bad.” (Page 319)
Related Posts
- Birth Order and Two-Child Families
- Parenting Tips for All Birth Orders
- Understanding the Middle Child–Why They are Balanced
