Chances are if you are reading this, you are the oldest sibling in your family, or in other terms "the guinea pig" of your family.
Having a sibling or multiple is a blessing and a relationship that is everlasting. Brothers and sisters are some of the greatest people to have in your life because it means you will always have someone there to catch you when you fall, talk to you when you’re lonely, relate to you on a daily basis, be crazy in front of, laugh and joke around with, but most of all be your best friend (well at least most of the time).
There are always those moments when you get on each others nerves and fight like cats and dogs, but regardless of what you were fighting or arguing over, in the end it’s like it never happened. Because let’s face it, if you are a brother or sister most chances are your daily dosage of fighting is once, at least on a good day.
However, these are the top struggles of being the oldest sibling...
1. The Ranking Status.
When it comes to siblings there will always be that argument that breaks out over your “ranking” status: Oldest, Youngest, or Middle Child. Apparently somewhere in sibling history, “Middle Child Syndrome” erupted and became a thing. Therefore, in that case why can’t we argue that there is such thing as “Oldest Child Syndrome”?
2. Everything is Your Fault.
For all you know, you can be in another state when something involving the younger sibling happens, and by the time you return you will probably get blamed despite not even being in the picture at the time.
3. You Are The Role Model.
You will ALWAYS be the role model to the younger one(s). And this pressure can be very frustrating at times, because you feel like you are constantly being analyzed and are expected to be perfect 24/7.
4. Having Them Around Your Friends.
They may not bother you the entire day but as soon as the doorbell rings and you open the door to your friends it’s like they have been released from the wild. All of a sudden they want to be your best friend and feel equivalent to you regardless of the age difference. The worst part is, just when you get a handle on the situation and let your guard down, it is at that moment that they blurt something out that they should NOT have, and you just sit there in denial and embarrassment.
5. Your Parents Are The Strictest On You.
Let’s face it, you are the “experimental” child, and with every one of your first time experiences, it is also your parents. Therefore, as the rankings get lower, the youngest can pretty much get away with anything...I mean anything.
6. You Are The Personal Tutor.
Since you are the oldest, when the younger sibling(s) don't understand something, your parents call you over to help them. Therefore, it’s like you’re going back to grammar or high school all over again, because the first time just wasn’t enough.
7. The "You are the oldest and should know better" speech.
The defense your parents use when the younger sibling does something but they feel the need to involve you.
8. You Just Can't Accept the Fact You Have To Grow Up First.
The hardest thing to accept as the oldest child is that there will be times when you realize you are growing up and have responsibilities that they don’t. You may get jealous when you see them doing things your younger self did and was able to do while you're too busy doing “grown up stuff”.
Despite these difficulties, as the oldest child you have learned to live with them because you know nothing will change the outcomes. And the line “You are the oldest, you should know better” will always haunt you.
But at the end of the day, despite how angry you may get at them, or how annoying and embarrassing they may be, you would never trade your siblings for anyone else in the world. They will always be there for you when others aren’t. They may be monsters at times but remember they will always be your monsters.
Most importantly, you will always be overprotective of them, and if anyone ever hurts them you will go after that person, because you are the only one who can yell at them, make fun of them, and fight like cats and dogs with them.
