For readers who haven't been following this blog regularly or for those who, like me, stow psychological terms away in special areas of the brain where they are difficult to access, I'd like to start out by defining just what OCS, also known as Only Child Syndrome, is.
First, please note that I have coined this term from personal experience and observation of many relationships. You won't find it in the DSM or Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, but that's merely an oversight that the health profession will one day hopefully correct.
One application of the term is for siblings who act as if the world revolves around them and do not acknowledge having brothers or sisters because this would mean giving up their "star" quality in the family. Another application is more general. OCS can indicate any individual so narcissistic and self-involved that you would swear on a stack of bibles that the person was raised in an only-child home. Thus this terminology can be applied to boy/girlfriends, friends, bosses, co-employees, virtually anyone you interact with.
One question you should first ask yourself is are you related to or have had sex (or any intimate relationship) with a person afflicted with OCS? Actually the use of the descriptor "afflicted" is incorrect here because OCS is the only--and I repeat, the only neurotic manifestation that people don't want to give up. Why don't they want to become a regular guy or gal? Well, like Mel Brooks often says, "It's good to be king." Obviously OCS people wield an incredible amount of power and are reluctant to give it up even if it means destroying a family or ending an amorous relationship with a lover.
Many OCS people developed their neurosis at an early age. How to recognize OCSs in training? One clue is if the parents refer to their child as "precocious." That might indicate he or she had early success with toilet training, cooing, sleeping through the night, and waving bye-bye. These are behaviors parents dote on so the OCS quickly moves to perfect them to enhance parental bonding.
More to come tomorrow when we explore the behaviors of the OCS preschooler as well as his favorite books and movies!
In the Scottish dialect of the old New Year's Eve song Auld Lang Syne, the composer posits the question: Should old acquaintances be forgot? The short answer to this is "Sometimes." One example will suffice. A "friend" of mine emailed me the other day and although she is not a writer, her words spoke plenty. Her first rebuke was that I don't answer her calls, and this is a claim I cannot deny. But the accusation was caustic, mean-spirited--it was as if I had neglected to visit her in the hospital, that's how grievous my omission was. She insinuated so much by those few harsh words. Why did she call? Purportedly to inform me of her physical status and that of her dog Murph. Being the obedient child I still am, I did call her afterwards, and we spoke. Mostly S spoke of her new illness--osteoarthritis of the spine--and her dog's possible diagnosis of valley fever. I listened and listened and listened until I just couldn't take it any more. The
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