Evening star., 1942-10-02
Great Problems
Of the Oldest
YOungster
Adults Must Shoe
EQual Affection
To Each Child
Bp Letfice Lee Street,

"
AS we we'll know, worldly posses
slons do not make for happiness
snd small Alice was a sad little eX-
ample of this old platltude. She
had the incest sort Of parents and
home, a pretty room of her own
with closet full of toys and becom-
ing little frocks, and she also had
a cute baby sister two years younger
than she.
But even though she apparently
had everything young lady could
desire, she was troubled and de-
spondent. She became so moroSe
that she was on the verge of a
serious mental depression.
Typical of many children, she was
!narticulate about her troubles, for
as you know, it is hard for young
sters to express their worries
verbally 1t therefore remains for
parents to judge whether Or not a
child is content and happy by OBJ
serving his behavior.
Signs of mental distress may be
many. among them shyness,
negativism, lack of emotional con-
trol, nail biting, suffering, any
habit spasms, enuresls and on
and on.
Alice was taken to a child psV-
chiatrist and after lengthy study
ner trouble was cured-he found
That this little girl was Jealous, that
she felt inferior to her baby sister
and unloved and unwanted by her
oarents. Hers was problem that
is not at all unusual for the Oldest
child.
jealousy is really the frustrated,
angry feeling that any one expert
ences when he sees another recelv-
ing the attention and rewards that
I've is accustomed to, wants or thinks
re deserves.
The oldest child in a family is
frequently made to feel jealous by
unthinking parents who do not
allow the transition from helpless
cuddly babyhood to independent
childhood to be gradual one, or
who tactlessly and cruelty neglect
the oldest child when the baby
arrives. or who seek to train the
child by criticism and unfavorable
comparison to another youngster,
and SO forth, down a long list of
stupid parental blunderS.
1t must be unbelievably bitter for
a child to discover almost overnight
that instead of being the center of
adoring attention, instead of enjoy
ing the solid comfort of being the
one and only baby in the family,
that he is suddenly and rudely rele-
gated to the background all because
cf nasty little red thing that cries
and squirms. With lip stuck out the
once only child is very likely to
hate his infant brother or sister, to
think there is something wrong with
him and to resent his parents at
tentions to the newcomer.
Another difficult problem the old
sst child has to face is the tendency
Of every one in the family to expect
him to behave with maturity he
does not possess He is asked to.do
all manner of tasks because che is
the biggest and if he rebels or does
not perform them perfectly he is
upbraided while he sees his younger
sisters and brothers basking smugly
in the sunshine of his mothers pa
tience and tolerance.
He may also feel driven beyond
endurance in his effort to live up
TO what is expected of him, particu-
larly If he is big for his age He may
not only strain to fulfill his parents
demands but he must not fall short
in the eyes OF his little brothers and
sisters, too. They expect him to
run faster, jump higher, climb bet
ter, and everything else, than they
DO II he fails he is tainted