Here's 10 surefire signs that a person didn't grow up with siblings

Growing up with siblings can be a learning experience

Childhood plays a major role in determining the kind of adults we will be. The experiences that people undergo often have a significant role in shaping an individual's character. Growing up as a single child has its benefits but having siblings can provide a much more holistic experience. Kids learn to share, make a stand and take care of each other much better. It also allows for kids to be exposed to the complexities of human relationships at an early age, equipping them with essential social skills that a single child would only be exposed to much later. Here are 10 signs that an individual grew up without a sibling.

1. Blindly trusting people 

I told my bf to close his eyes and open his mouth(I was surprising him with candy), and he just did it with no suspicion at all. People with siblings can’t trust like that. u/cowsofoblivion. I, an only child, told my gf I didn't know what a Chinese burn was. When she offered to show me, I trustingly gave her my arm. I now know what a Chinese burn is. She, not only the child, thought my shock was hysterical. She also eats really fast! u/cherrybaggle

2. Lack of Exposure to more content 

I’m an only child. One huge difference I see time and time again with those who have siblings—they had much more exposure to a longer timespan of media/music/games growing up. My idea of nostalgia consists of my specific timeline of media growing up, but those with siblings were able to watch tv shows their older brother watched or know about that game their little sister played. u/DopeYeti. This is a good point I never thought about. My husband is familiar with a lot of Spanish soap operas and boy band songs that I grew up with because he had older sisters. Me, on the other hand, know nothing about his DragonBall Z or the boy things that he grew up with. u/Narfle_da_Garthok

3. Doesn't announce where they're going

I heard that only children are less likely to announce where they are going when they leave a room. Right away I realized I do that, but my partner who grew up with 2 sisters tells me where he’s about to go when he moves, even if it’s to the bathroom. u/NucularOrchid. Now that I'm in my 30s I’ve trained myself to say where I’m going when I leave a room but it STILL feels so awkward when I do it. I also distinctly remember being confused in my first few relationships when people told me they were going to the restroom (okay?) and irritated when I would get up to go and they’d ask me where I’m going (like, we’re in a 1 b/r apartment and I’m not walking out the door, there are only so many options.) u/pissliquors

4. How they deal with conflict

My bf is an only child and it was his confusion at how I can be mad at my sister (who is also my roommate) one minute and turn around and get ice cream or go see a movie together. He grew up with a bunch of cousins around his age, but it was the quick turnaround of “I’m so mad at you” to “I wanna hang out, let’s do something.” u/sister-christian69. Hypothesis: I think we don’t have practice of dealing with conflict. I had an argument with someone a few years back and I fully expected it to be awkward between us when we saw each other the next day, but she (not an only child) started chatting with me like everything was fine. I was taken aback and thought this would have lasted for much longer. u/RaspberryTurtle987

5. Equating friendship to having siblings

Thinking friendship is like having siblings. It's not. I would never smash a toy on my friend's head and expect them to speak to me after. u/Useful_Jello2910. As an only child, this is what took me the longest to understand. I thought siblings hated each other based on how they treated each other. It wasn't until I realized that they could go from assaulting each other to jumping to each other's defense in an instant that I understood how complex and deep the relationship between siblings can be. I have sisters. Four of them. But none of us grew up together, so we don't have that dynamic. u/Drakmanka

6.  Not sharing food 

My husband HATES sharing food! He is also very good at keeping himself entertained and busy- this was very evident during Covid when I was soooo bored and lost because all my previous hobbies and pastimes were outside the home and/or social activities, however, he just kept going and picked up so many new little hobbies that were independent. u/badjmsbe. Coming from a middle child I always had my food taken, initially sharing was concerning to me. My wife pointed out when we were on our second date that I ate almost too quickly, seemed like I was on guard, and I had my arm wrapped around my plate as if I was ready to move someone’s hand if they were trying to take my food. u/tyadams15

7. Different food habits 

From personal experience, food habits. Like buying snacks to store at home and fully expecting them to not have been touched when you’re gone, or eating slower at the dinner table because you’re not fighting over the good food. As a teen, on the rare occasion my dad would steal a snack I got for myself I’d freak out, whereas my friends with siblings just resigned themselves to the fate of snacks inevitably disappearing. My mom eats super fast at meals, and she attributes it largely to growing up with siblings. u/HornedTwiddle

8. Dealing with bullies 

I worked with a set of brothers, and they were both a little younger than me, but I got along really well with the younger of the two. I have three brothers myself, two of which who are older than me, and we got to talking about the violence we experienced at the hands of our older brothers growing up and were commiserating about it. The older brother heard us and asked, "Wait... Does that still really bother you guys that much???" and his brother and I both were like, "F***** yeah, dude! That s*** sticks with you." And he had no clue because he had always gotten away with it. As a younger brother, the feeling of powerlessness to stop it from happening in the first place, let alone fight back in any meaningful way, really sucked. Obviously, things cooled off as I got bigger and older, and thankfully I'm really good friends with all my brothers now, but those feelings could have easily led to a lot of resentment. u/Horrible_Harry

9. Not realizing that they can ask for help

I am an only child. I’ve noticed I tend to make a lot of life choices on my own and don’t seek out a lot of advice or ask for help when I could definitely use it. In fact, I’ve been pretty deep in tough situations when I finally have the realization that there are people and resources I can utilize. It’s not so much I’m worried about asking for help, more like it doesn’t even register in my brain that there is help outside of myself. u/Jaded_Syrup2454

10. Being a quiet roommate

They’re very quiet roommates in my experience. Sometimes don’t even know when they’re home. I hypothesize that they’re just used to quiet spaces and might feel uncomfortable when their surroundings get loud or chaotic. People with siblings are used to other people clanging around and making noise. They need more alone time and aren’t scared of being home by themselves. When they’re planning to go somewhere or do something, they don’t tell anyone or announce it. They just go do it. As adults, they tend to live alone rather than with roommates, if circumstances allow it.

If their parents are either super young or super old compared to their peers’ parents, it’s more likely they’re the only kid. u/IcyConsideration4714