Heritable Conditions

What is the cumulative effect on a child of having parents and grandparents refer to him in the third person as "the poor kid"? Mostly it is done outside his range of hearing, but no attempt is made to change the diminutive title when he is playing nearby. There is no doubt that the child has special dietary needs that prevent him from eating the wide range of foods that most of us enjoy. I suspect that the continual "poor kid" attitude is teaching him that he is permanently disadvantaged. Instead of focusing on his bright wit, energy and intelligence, he is being taught that he has a crutch, an excuse, a lever for prying out sympathy. He has already learnt that if he eats certain forbidden food that he can be excused for irresponsible behaviour. How will he grow in relationships? Will he subconsciously view himself as a cripple, deserving of understanding and pity? Will he "inherit" hypochondria?