Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • The Atlantic

    Dear Therapist: Is My Middle Child a Monster?

    I’m so tired of people seeing only her bad traits.
    by Lori Gottlieb Aug 03, 2020 5 minutes
    Source: Bianca Bagnarelli

    Editor’s Note: Every Monday, Lori Gottlieb answers questions from readers about their problems, big and small. Have a question? Email her at dear.therapist@theatlantic.com.

    Dear Therapist,

    My husband and I have three terrific kids, ages 6, 4, and 2. Our oldest is cautious, helpful, and precocious. Our youngest is easygoing, affectionate, and goofy. Our middle child is persistent, bold, imaginative, and tenderhearted. Her personality is not as easy as her siblings’, but she’s a great kid. If she makes me want to pull my hair out five times a day, then she makes me laugh, surprises me, or melts my heart 10 times a day.

    The problem comes from others. Our elderly next-door neighbor dotes on the oldest and youngest and all but ignores the middle one. More than once, she has asked whether our doctors have diagnosed her with any disorders. I just look at her as if I don’t understand her

    You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

    More from The Atlantic

    The Atlantic4 min read
    Hayao Miyazaki’s Anti-war Fantasia
    Once, in a windowless conference room, I got into an argument with a minor Japanese-government official about Hayao Miyazaki. This was in 2017, three years after the director had announced his latest retirement from filmmaking. His final project was
    The Atlantic5 min read
    The Strangest Job in the World
    This is an edition of the Books Briefing, our editors’ weekly guide to the best in books. Sign up for it here. The role of first lady couldn’t be stranger. You attain the position almost by accident, simply by virtue of being married to the president
    The Atlantic2 min read
    Preface
    Illustrations by Miki Lowe For much of his career, the poet W. H. Auden was known for writing fiercely political work. He critiqued capitalism, warned of fascism, and documented hunger, protest, war. He was deeply influenced by Marxism. And he was hu

    Related Books & Audiobooks