Guest guest Posted September 8, 2008 Report Share Posted September 8, 2008 Hi, My daughter is almost 16. I used to think that it was just terrible if my daughter didn't have friends and lots of social interaction. Doctors told me that she needed to be socialized, yet they told me years before that she needed to be vaccinated. After years of forcing my daughter to be more social with peers and have her in every dance class, softball team and other activities I realized that she doesn't need the interaction. does not long for friends or to be more social, she just wants to be happy with herself. When I force her to talk to people or do things that she just hates then it just makes her more miserable. Ask yourself if this is for your child or for others. Just my opinion. Hope > This is somewhat like a poll, but how many of us here have a > daughter that is an only child? If your daughter's an only child, > how old is she and what do you do to encourage social interaction > either outside of the home or inside? > > Karmen > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 8, 2008 Report Share Posted September 8, 2008 Hi, My daughter is almost 16. I used to think that it was just terrible if my daughter didn't have friends and lots of social interaction. Doctors told me that she needed to be socialized, yet they told me years before that she needed to be vaccinated. After years of forcing my daughter to be more social with peers and have her in every dance class, softball team and other activities I realized that she doesn't need the interaction. does not long for friends or to be more social, she just wants to be happy with herself. When I force her to talk to people or do things that she just hates then it just makes her more miserable. Ask yourself if this is for your child or for others. Just my opinion. Hope > This is somewhat like a poll, but how many of us here have a > daughter that is an only child? If your daughter's an only child, > how old is she and what do you do to encourage social interaction > either outside of the home or inside? > > Karmen > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 8, 2008 Report Share Posted September 8, 2008 I agree, Hope. I present with opportunities and if she is interested and happy, then we continue. My husband used to lament all the things she was " missing out on " and how bad he felt for her when he'd see other little girls in the neighborhood playing and talking and laughing together, while she was happily involved in her own activities. You can't " miss out " on something that you are either unaware of, can't relate to or don't really care about. His own childhood was pretty crappy and he had all these plans to make things different for his children. So I pointed out his feelings really about HIM, not about . > Hi, > My daughter is almost 16. I used to think that it was just > terrible if my daughter didn't have friends and lots of social > interaction. Doctors told me that she needed to be socialized, yet > they told me years before that she needed to be vaccinated. After > years of forcing my daughter to be more social with peers and have > her in every dance class, softball team and other activities I > realized that she doesn't need the interaction. does not > long for friends or to be more social, she just wants to be happy > with herself. When I force her to talk to people or do things that > she just hates then it just makes her more miserable. > Ask yourself if this is for your child or for others. > Just my opinion. > > Hope > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 8, 2008 Report Share Posted September 8, 2008 I have a nephew sort of like that when it comes to siblings. He never wanted siblings, was always happy. People would try to shame my SIL into having another one, as if it was any of their business. Although, I did tease my nephew as he graduated high school his mother was super-obsessed on him and micromanaged everything. I told him all those times he told her he was happy & didn't want a sibling are coming back to bite him, if he had a younger brother/sister his mother wouldn't have had time to be so overbearing. Lol. She did have a terrible time letting go. But gee, I have 3 kids & know I'm gonna have a terrible time with each one. People who don't know a situation can be the worst of the worst with their nitwit advice. Debi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 8, 2008 Report Share Posted September 8, 2008 Hi Sandi, Your daughter is very fortunate to have a small, close circle of friends. Are any of her friends 'typical', or are they all on the spectrum? Has your daughter ever had any difficulties interacting with the other girls? Karmen Re: Only child Hi Karmen, My daughter Allie is 13 now and an only child. She and our God daughter have grown up together somewhat like cousins, usually seeing each other at least once a month and often more. They play video games, watch movies, enjoy roll-playing games, go to concerts and amusement parks, and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo every year. When they were younger, our families even vacationed together. Allie also has a same age friend who is diagnosed AS. When her family moved from out of state into our neighborhood and 'C' entered the same school, a local support organization introduced us. All 3 families get together. Sometimes while the adults play board games and card games, all 3 girls enjoy going to Allie's room to dress up for roll playing sessions in who knows what imaginary lands. Sometimes after school and on weekends Allie & 'C' just get together to play video games for hours. Allie has also been a Girl Scout for 8 years, and that has given a huge amount of social interaction and development in a positive environment. It would take another entire email to make a dent in all of the fun and development she has gained in Girl Scouts alone. She has done other things too, such as a few years of gymnastics, 5 years of dance [with a number of girls from the Circle of Friends we developed in 3rd grade]. I hear that there's a teen group that meets at the community college up the road too, and now that she's old enough we want to look into that. I hope this gives some ideas. Sandi In a message dated 9/7/2008 7:37:24 P.M. Central Daylight Time, kcboone@... writes: This is somewhat like a poll, but how many of us here have a daughter that is an only child? If your daughter's an only child, how old is she and what do you do to encourage social interaction either outside of the home or inside? Karmen **************Psssst...Have you heard the news? There's a new fashion blog, plus the latest fall trends and hair styles at StyleList.com. (http://www.stylelist.com/trends?ncid=aolsty00050000000014) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 8, 2008 Report Share Posted September 8, 2008 Hi Sandi, Your daughter is very fortunate to have a small, close circle of friends. Are any of her friends 'typical', or are they all on the spectrum? Has your daughter ever had any difficulties interacting with the other girls? Karmen Re: Only child Hi Karmen, My daughter Allie is 13 now and an only child. She and our God daughter have grown up together somewhat like cousins, usually seeing each other at least once a month and often more. They play video games, watch movies, enjoy roll-playing games, go to concerts and amusement parks, and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo every year. When they were younger, our families even vacationed together. Allie also has a same age friend who is diagnosed AS. When her family moved from out of state into our neighborhood and 'C' entered the same school, a local support organization introduced us. All 3 families get together. Sometimes while the adults play board games and card games, all 3 girls enjoy going to Allie's room to dress up for roll playing sessions in who knows what imaginary lands. Sometimes after school and on weekends Allie & 'C' just get together to play video games for hours. Allie has also been a Girl Scout for 8 years, and that has given a huge amount of social interaction and development in a positive environment. It would take another entire email to make a dent in all of the fun and development she has gained in Girl Scouts alone. She has done other things too, such as a few years of gymnastics, 5 years of dance [with a number of girls from the Circle of Friends we developed in 3rd grade]. I hear that there's a teen group that meets at the community college up the road too, and now that she's old enough we want to look into that. I hope this gives some ideas. Sandi In a message dated 9/7/2008 7:37:24 P.M. Central Daylight Time, kcboone@... writes: This is somewhat like a poll, but how many of us here have a daughter that is an only child? If your daughter's an only child, how old is she and what do you do to encourage social interaction either outside of the home or inside? Karmen **************Psssst...Have you heard the news? There's a new fashion blog, plus the latest fall trends and hair styles at StyleList.com. (http://www.stylelist.com/trends?ncid=aolsty00050000000014) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 8, 2008 Report Share Posted September 8, 2008 Karmen, My daughter is 4-1/2 and we have a NT son who is 20 months. I have found that with my daughter I try to arrange play dates with friends outside our home because she gets very territorial with her toys. I also found that when I started taking care of a younger girl (16 months) 2 days a week she became very motherly to her, and since then she has been very motherly to her peers as well. > > This is somewhat like a poll, but how many of us here have a daughter that is an only child? If your daughter's an only child, how old is she and what do you do to encourage social interaction either outside of the home or inside? > > Karmen > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 8, 2008 Report Share Posted September 8, 2008 Karmen, My daughter is 4-1/2 and we have a NT son who is 20 months. I have found that with my daughter I try to arrange play dates with friends outside our home because she gets very territorial with her toys. I also found that when I started taking care of a younger girl (16 months) 2 days a week she became very motherly to her, and since then she has been very motherly to her peers as well. > > This is somewhat like a poll, but how many of us here have a daughter that is an only child? If your daughter's an only child, how old is she and what do you do to encourage social interaction either outside of the home or inside? > > Karmen > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.