Do you have sibling jealousy at home?

It is quite normal for young kids to feel they are not getting the attention they need from their parents, especially if all of a sudden they have a baby brother/sister to take it all away. Even if your kids are of similar age, jealousy is most likely to happen when favouritism is shown or a parent is often busy or compares a kid to another.

When a baby is introduced to a kid as their new sibling, jealousy and mixed emotions will surface… and that is normal.

How to dissipate jealousy between a three-year-old and a baby?

Read on for some tips.

• Build a bond with your kid: If your family just welcomed a new baby, your kid will no longer be a lonely child, which means the attention they used to receive is now focused on the baby. Make sure to give your first child the love, time, care, and attention they need. Whether it’s with a smile, a hug, or one-on-one time.

• Listen to your child: Sometimes, kids will say and do whatever just to make you angry and notice them. By doing that, they would be letting out the loneliness or frustration they’re feeling. When your kid says “You don’t love me anymore,” “I hate you,” or “I hate my baby brother/sister” it’s because you are spending more time with the baby than with them. Even though a baby naturally needs more care, you shouldn’t neglect your other kid. Listen to what they are saying and reply gently. Remind them of how much you love them, that you’ll always be ready to help them when they need you, and make sure to explain how hard it is to have a baby who can’t take care of themselves.

• Give them responsibilities: Let your kid know that they’re big enough to be helping you take care of the baby and around the house. That way, they will feel entitled and responsible of what’s happening at home. This nurtures a feeling of maturity in your kid.

• Laughter is key: When your kid is mad at you for not playing with them, they might go to the source of the problem, the baby. As they notice you’re either at work, at home but doing chores, or taking care of the baby, they might want to ruin what’s keeping you busy. This could be in the form of taking away a toy from the baby’s hands. As they run away to their room with the toy, follow them, grab them, tickle them, kiss them all over, and make them laugh. That way, your kid will let go of the toy and will be ready to return it to the baby.

• Acknowledge good behavior: When your child is being nice to their baby brother/sister, make sure to point it out. Once they feel happy and satisfied about this, they will make sure to repeat this sweet behavior more often just to make you happy.