Middle Child Syndrome

I am a middle child. Like most middle children, I believe that I am the least favorite child of my parents. First, there's my older, more responsible sister, Shannon. She is the "responsible leader," and never does anything wrong. Then came me, another girl. Sure, I was cute. Actually, I was more than cute. I had white blonde hair, bright blue eyes, a bubbly personality. But I was just another girl. But oh joy, then they had my younger brother, Collin. They were so excited to finally have their boy (mom lost two boys before Shan was even born). Collin is the baby of the family. He's the performer, always searching for attention.

I did a little research on middle children, and I discovered why I am the way I am.

If you’re a middle child, you can probably tell stories about your family photo album. There are around 300 pictures of your oldest sibling, about 100 pictures of your youngest sibling, but only 10 pictures of you, right? Some middle children say their parents even forget their names from time to time (my mom called me my brother's name all the time!).

Because middle children can feel overlooked at home, they often go outside the family to find acceptance. They are often the social and popular members of the family. They are well-liked because they are friendly and they accept people. Because middle children need to get along with the youngest and oldest siblings, they may become good peacemakers.

Secretive – Middle children often keep their hurts to themselves. They won’t tell you how left out they feel when you unwittingly overlook them, but if you are attentive you will notice their inexplicably sullen or sad behavior.

Flexible – Because they are born in the middle of everything, they have had to learn to adjust. Some are more laid-back than others, but most of them know how to adapt to situations and people. They are a bit more realistic about problems and solutions.

This is pretty accurate. I am very social. I am the most popular family member :). I am very friendly. I do accept people. I am a good peacemaker. I am flexible. And I am secretive. I'm not very eager to share my feelings unless you dig it out of me.

Now you know a little bit about me. I blame it all on being a middle child.