The dynamics that make up family is varied and strange. It will change from family to family and person to person. Depending on what position you are born into in the family can affect not only how you are raised but the personality that you develop. To understand the pros and cons of being the youngest child then you have to look at the family as a whole. If there are only two children then the youngest child and oldest child might not be as strongly affected as a child born into a family of six.
The pros of being the youngest child are great. You are normally coddled or babied, which can allow you to get your way more often. By the time you are born the parents are more likely to be tired especially if you are born into a large family, which means the rules will be less strict and your life will be easier. You have older siblings that will look out for you. They will be able to help you with your school work and something they are even willing to do this. If you have older brothers, they will beat up or intimidate the boy in your class that is picking on you. These are just a few of the things that will work in your favor as the youngest child.
But being the youngest child isn’t all fun and games. Your parents aren’t as likely to have the time and energy to devote to you that they did to the oldest child. You will have older siblings that will try to annoy and intimidate you and boss you around. You will be eternally known as the baby in the family and your siblings and parents will have a hard time believing that you can ever be anything but the baby. If you have older brothers they will scare off boys so it will be harder for you to find a date if you are a girl. You will be compared to your older siblings on a regular basis, well such and such did this, why don’t you. These are just a few of the items you will have to overcome as the youngest child.
As with everything in life, it is up to you to decide how you are going to be treated and how you are going to react to any given situation. You can’t let others dictate how you are going to be or what your personality is going to develop into. Being the youngest child has its advantages and disadvantages; it is up to you how you let them shape your life.
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I am the youngest of 6 children with a 10 year gap between me and the next child. Being brought up as the youngest was fun when I was younger. When I hit a certain age it sucked because I was always stuck at the kiddie table, no one would talk to me, I spent most holidays or events alone in my room because people wouldn't speak to me and I have NOTHING in common with my siblings now as an adult. I feel like an outsider and never speak to any of them. I basically feel like an only child most of the time. Now that I am married I get a lot of hostility from my siblings and that makes me feel even more like an outsider.
AMEN. There is a 19 year gap between me and the next older child in our family of four.
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