Agroup of adults sits cringing in a circle of plastic chairs, each clearly wondering whether it is too late to duck out of this weekend workshop for only children. About 35 people have come to a conference centre on a windswept stretch of the Sussex coast to spend two days exploring the lasting effects of a solitary upbringing. To start off, 10 of us have been encouraged to join this session on "playtime" and to experience some of the rough and tumble we missed while growing up.

A joke about leaving an empty chair for the collective imaginary friend reduces the level of tension and allows us to get on with the painful business of "sharing" - not just the balls and toys provided for the session (something we never had to do at home, of course) but our thoughts and feelings about the advantages and disadvantages of being our parents' sole offspring.