Suffice it to say that sibling rivalry is going to happen in every household with more than one child, but the level of normalcy is a major question when you ponder the extent of sibling rivalry in ones home.  As a precursor, while your children are still very young, it is a good practice for you, the parent, to NOT compare your children or label them against one another.

For example, don’t say, Suzy is the “smart” one and Jimmy is quite a “looker,” as it may suggest to each child that they are not attractive or not as smart as the other one. In the same since it may instill a small seed that can continue to grow as they grow and develop, making them more susceptible to compete or in a more extreme category, terrorize one another, out of jealousy, to compete for more favorable comments from their parents.

The rivalry can becomes a worse problem if your children bully or dominate  one another.  What remains at the core of this issue is a common trend, where one child is the victim of the other and in their mind, they are “less” than. Who knows what the exact prompt is, but you have the power to keep it in check, by affirming each child, and showing each child equal amounts of attention and love! Let’s face it, that is what most children crave, your love and your attention. If they have it all else in their world is amazing. Remember that and sibling rivalry will not become hinderance to your children’s bonding and development as they grow together under one roof.

Remember, it’s your responsibility to help your children learn to manage the ill feelings that can sometimes develop when another sibling comes into the picture.  If left unchecked, it can carry over into their adult lives, and can become even more of a hinderance to contend with later.

Food for thought…and as usual, I would love to know Your thoughts.