There are times when, no matter how hard you have tried to help your older child adjust to the new sibling, that your older child will inevitably have some trouble. Whether this is a simple feeling of neglect or whether it becomes something much more severe, such as acting out by your older child, the fact of the matter is that there is only so much that you can do to smooth things over. Still, by sticking to some very basic principles of parenting you can reduce the trouble that your older child is having adjusting to his new sibling.

One of the most basic things that you can do to help your child who is having trouble adjusting to his new sibling is to spend time with the older child. The fact of the matter is that having a new baby in the house changes the way a family works. When you have a child that has been the only child for a while, she may be very used to having all of mommy and daddy’s attention, all of the time. The new baby takes some of the time and attention away from the older child, plain and simple. By making special one-on-one time with either mom or dad and the older child, you can ease this adjustment. Reassure the older child in this process that he has not been forgotten and is not any less loved, but rather that there has just been a change in the way that the family’s schedule works out.

The most important thing to keep in mind when an older child is having trouble adjusting to his new sibling is that your older child may not know or be able to appropriately deal with these frustrations. It is very important that you help the older child to understand what is acceptable behavior and what is not, and to keep an eye out for any dangerous or destructive behaviors from your older child.

If your older child is having severe trouble adjusting to his new sibling, you might consider some form of help, whether it is in the form of family therapy, or whether it is therapy for the older child only.

Posted in Parenting

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