I find that most children REALLY annoy me... I do have a daughter, which can get on my nerves at times but Im okay with that. For the most part she listens to me and can entertain herself. However I really dont like when her friends come over. Dont know if its just that they dont listen or they just talk, talk, TALK!! or that its an added responsibility.

Just want to know if this *might* be normal? less

I find that most children REALLY annoy me... I do have a daughter, which can get on my nerves at times but Im okay with that. For the most part she listens to me and can entertain herself. However I really dont like when her friends come over. Dont know if its just that they dont listen or they just talk, talk, TALK!! or that its an added responsibility.

Just want to know if this *might* be normal? less

I didn't like children for the longest time, but I realized it was because the only contact I had with children was on airplanes. I recently took a job in childcare, and now I am able to enjoy the company of most kids despite age-related shortcomings. I enjoy the respect they give me.

P'Gell, once again you have proven yourself very wise! As a child, I was very conscious of discrimination. No, I'm not talking about not being able to buy beer...I would state my opinion in an argument and people would just talk over me. Children deserve respect even though they haven't had time to learn about the world. less

I find that most children REALLY annoy me... I do have a daughter, which can get on my nerves at times but Im okay with that. For the most part she listens to me and can entertain herself. However I really dont like when her friends come over. Dont know if its just that they dont listen or they just talk, talk, TALK!! or that its an added responsibility.

Just want to know if this *might* be normal? less

I agree with P'Gell. I think it's really, really important to work hard to cultivate an enjoyment (and love) of children if you have them or work around them. Children have a lot to offer if we just take the time to respect them for who and what they are. They can tell when they aren't wanted or when you don't care about them, so if you have children it's important to cultivate a love for them if it doesn't come naturally to you. You need extra patience and understanding when around children, but it's important not to alienate your own children (or their friends) just because you find them personally annoying. As adults, it's our job to be the grown ups, and cultivate the necessary qualities to enjoy children, and encourage them to feel good about themselves, feel loved and feel safe. It isn't a child's fault it is on this planet, and remember, we were all children once.

I know women who are mothers and do not like children. It breaks my heart to see how they treat their kids and to see how the kids feel about themselves and their lives. It just isn't fair to the kids. less

I don't want to get into what is "wrong" or not. I love children. Most of the jobs I have had have involved working with children. I love the way their innocent little minds work, I love the stuff they say, I love the way they see the world from unjaded eyes. I love to watch them learn and seemingly pick up skills and ideas out of thin air. Their innocence and beauty never ceases to give me joy.

One must actually cultivate more tolerance to be able to like children than is even needed to "like" most adults. Why? Children are of course, immature, they don't understand the way the world works, thus they ask a lot of questions and make a lot of mistakes. We all made these mistakes. It is simply the way humans learn.

Honestly, I prefer the company of children to most teens and early 20 somethings. At least most children have absolutely no pretentiousness and aren't trying to prove anything to anyone or make me think they "identify" with things I know they know little about.

Children simply ARE who they are. And innocence and naivety can be seen as irritating or endearing. It depends on how tolerant one is.

People are not going to stop having children, any more than people are going to stop immigrating into the country, getting old, being pretentious, living within their own "culture" or choosing their own lifestyles. I think we at least owe children the tolerance we give any adult we have little in common with.

We can blame them for this most natural of ways, or we can cultivate tolerance and become better people by learning to understand the most vulnerable people in our society.

Sometimes I wonder why people refuse to fund education or early intervention programs, and then I see people who don't realize that being a child is a state NO ONE chooses. We were all children at one point, and I think we owe children the kindness we would show any other human being, more in fact, because they don't understand the ways of the world yet, and really are not in a place to make their own choices about most things.

Put any minority in the place of the word "child" in a lot of places and you'll see the bias against children. less

I agree with P'Gell. I think it's really, really important to work hard to cultivate an enjoyment (and love) of children if you have them or work around them. Children have a lot to offer if we just take the time to respect them for who and what they are. They can tell when they aren't wanted or when you don't care about them, so if you have children it's important to cultivate a love for them if it doesn't come naturally to you. You need extra patience and understanding when around children, but it's important not to alienate your own children (or their friends) just because you find them personally annoying. As adults, it's our job to be the grown ups, and cultivate the necessary qualities to enjoy children, and encourage them to feel good about themselves, feel loved and feel safe. It isn't a child's fault it is on this planet, and remember, we were all children once.

I know women who are mothers and do not like children. It breaks my heart to see how they treat their kids and to see how the kids feel about themselves and their lives. It just isn't fair to the kids. less

Amen. I feel if people can't tolerate kids, there are many choices for them, the first of which is simply not having them. Or, working on their own intolerances to actually cultivate a love of children. NO, most aren't "perfectly behaved." NO ONE'S kids are all the time. "Good" parents, "Bad" parents, it doesn't matter! All kids are bratty at times, and most parents have little control (besides maybe beatings) over a lot of "naughty in public" behavior. I am highly suspicious of people who claim their kids are "always well behaved" yet go on and on about the "brattiness" of others children. I often see the "my kids never misbehave or act bratty" parents kids are NO different than anyone elses, their parents are simply either immune or are able to ignore their own children's less than "perfect" behavior. IMO, most adults are much more annoying than most kids I know.

But, like it or not, children ARE part of our society. Put "black" or "Latina" or "Mentally Handicapped" or "Elderly" in the place of "child" in some people's speech and see what kind of reaction you get. It's the same thing. In some circles it's not only "OK" to not like kids, it's expected for you to not tolerate them. I don't get that at all, but I've run into it.

I don't get it. Everyone can do internal work to decrease their intolerances. Its an ongoing process and part of being human and getting along with others.

I stand strongly behind people who realize they wouldn't make good parents and refuse to bring unwanted and unappreciated kids into the world. I think it's a very mature decision on their part. All children should be born to people who love and WANT them, as well as are willing to realize that children need friends and so are willing to work on themselves to be able to tolerate other children, in order to make their own children's lives richer. less