The Pros and Cons of Having an Only Child

Many people today are downsizing the size of their families. They have decided that they only want to have one child. They feel that one child is enough for them. In my article today I'd like to discuss the pros and cons to having one child. I believe that it is important to think about these things before a person decides on the size of their family.

Pros

The first pro that there is when you have an only child is that you only have one child to think about. There are many decisions that parents have to make and having more than one child makes it even more difficult. Some of the decisions that will have to be made are what type of school will the child go to, who will baby sit the child, and how to discipline the child. When you have more than one child each child's needs are different so you have to handle these things differently. At least if you only have one child then you and the other parent can readily agree on how to do these things. It can save a lot of arguing. If you have more than one child then there can be disagreements. There is just more to think about and decide upon.

The second pro to having an only child is that you can pass all that you own onto that child alone. You will not have to worry about having to decide who gets what if you should pass away. You know that this child is going to be your only inheritor and this makes it easy. You also don't have to worry about favoritism. You will not have to think that you are playing favorites by giving one child something that you didn't give another. You also won't have to get into arguments with your partner on who should get what.

A third pro to having an only child is that you can spoil them. What I mean by this is that your money will go farther. If they really desire something for Christmas or birthdays then chances are you can get it for them. You can also afford to buy them the most popular clothing line of the time. This makes it nice when it comes time for them to be in school. You will not have to worry because you have other children's birthdays coming up or you need to buy them school clothing. You also will not have to worry about favoritism because children tend to think that one child always gets more than they do.

A fourth pro to having an only child is that can spend more time with them. When you have more than one child you have to divide your attention between the children. If you have an only child you will never feel guilty because you will be able to spend all of your time with him. He will always feel like he is getting enough attention and he won't feel jealous.

Cons

There is always going to be cons as well as pros when it comes to having an only child. One of the cons to having an only child is that the child may become lonely. If there is not a sibling to play with then the child can get bored and lonely at times. Sometimes neighbor kids are not available to play with so this makes it inconvenient. If your child has siblings then you don't have to worry about this. They will always have someone to play with.

The second con to having an only child is that they may not learn what it is to give and take. They may not know how to share their toys. Because the toys are only their own they do not feel the need to share. Unless you put them with other children they will not learn this at an early age.

A third con to having an only child is that they can become too spoiled. They may expect everything to be given to them. Because you can afford to give them the best they may expect the best all of the time. This can cause some unrealistic expectations when it comes to adulthood. They may not be able to cope when they cannot give themselves the best.

A fourth con to having an only child is that their family size will be very small when they become adults. Their children will not have cousins or aunts and uncles to get to know unless it is on the other parent's side of the family. Another problem is that if you should pass away then they will not have the support of a brother or sister to help them through your passing.

A fifth con to having an only child is that your child will not have a brother or sister to rely on if he becomes sick and in need. He will not have a family member to call on if you have already passed on. Sometimes it is nice to know that you have siblings that have your best interest in mind should you ever need them.

I hope that this article has helped you if you are decided to have an only child. There are a lot of things to think about when it comes to this. It is not a decision to lightly be made. I encourage you to really think about it before you make a decision. You should also talk to others who have experienced some of the things that I have talked about in this article. It may help you to make your choice easier.