Ah yes…the middle child. The forgotten one, the least important one, the one that got a taste of being the baby for a while before another kid came along. You’ve heard “Oh you’re the middle child? That must suck” more times that you can count, people just assume you’re miserable, and everyone thinks you only have some minuscule role in the family. The stigma around being a middle child seems to have always been negative, leaving all of us middle children to just assume it’s all true. Being the middle child actually has a TON of perks though and here are some reasons why.
- You get the experience of being a younger sister AND an older sister.
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You probably have a ton of friends that have either older or younger siblings in their family, and you get the awesome experience of having both. You not only get to learn from your older sibling, but you get to impart wisdom upon your younger sibling as well. The relationships between birth orders are so different and not a lot of people can say that they have both, so embrace it!
- You serve as the mediator between your siblings.
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You’re the middleman. Literally. You’re the tiebreaker and essentially the one who calls the shots. You have tabs on both you’re siblings and you’re not afraid to threaten them to get what you want. If there’s a disagreement between the other two, your parents are going to look to you to give them the facts. Give it to ‘em straight.
- You’re the “real deal”.
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Honestly, your older sibling was like the “test run” for your parents. By the time you came along, they knew what to do and what not to do. Some will say this is a disadvantage for middle children, but honestly you get to mooch off your older sibling. They did all the hard work in order for your parents to figure the whole parenting thing out, now you get to reap the benefits. By the time the next child came around, your parents have pretty much got it down thanks to you. You pretty much made them the great parents that they are. Go you!
- There’s not as much pressure on you.
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If you think there’s a harsh stigma around middle children, just look at the ones for the oldest and youngest. Older children are expected to pave the way and younger children are considered spoiled and in need of help. You’re not the leader of the group or a follower, you’re just chilling in the crowd. You’re not expected to have a certain role in the family, so you get to pave your own path and dance to your own beat.
- You can use people feeling bad for you to your advantage.
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You may not be able to change how people look at middle children, so use it to your advantage. They feel bad for you? Odds are that they might end up paying you more attention and trying to overcome the stigma themselves. Play it up and enjoy it, they don’t have to know that you’re the sibling that actually has it the best.
- You’ll always be in a sibling sandwich.
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The relationship you have with your siblings is a lifelong deal that is unlike any other, and you get to be the lucky one right in the center of it. You get to be in the middle of the pictures, get away with more stuff, and learn how to help your siblings and be helped by them. It’s a pretty awesome dynamic that you get to be a part of for the rest of your life, and in a way the system revolves around you. Who could ask for a better set up?
It really is pretty awesome being the middle child when you think about all the great advantages you get out of it. Here’s to all the #2 kids out there!