7 year old has no friends

We have just moved to a new city 1 month ago and already the neighbor kids do not want to play with my 7 year old daughter.  They said "before you moved in we all played and got along, now we don't have any fun and we fight all the time".

A bit of history, I have been a single mother with no father influence for the last 7 years.  My daughter is the first child in my family so she has been quite spoiled by her uncles and grandparents.  Since my daughter was 1 I have had problems with her in daycares homes and centers she was/is a very busy child and is very very strong willed.  I went through 8 daycare centers before she started K.  She has been the center of attention with adults all her life.  The adults just love her and think she is wonderful.  Which she is, however when it comes to making friends she wants to be the boss and run the show with kids.  These kids get pretty sick of her and this is when they start fighting.  Even in school the teacher says she does not have any certain friend. She plays with one one day then another the next because the other child is tired of her.  I have had her in a private school this year to see if this would help.  All that I feel has helped is I am understanding her a little more.  She is very bossy and mouthy in school, even to the teachers.  She has a hard time sitting still, she gets up and goes to the bathroom several times a day.  One thing I have done and has worked a little is cut sugar out of her diet as much as possible.

Now in the last year I have remarried and am expecting another child.  My new husband is great and treats her like his own child and is very concerned also.  

What can I tell or do for my daughter so she can maintain friendships?

Amy

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

Dear Amy,

You won't be able to solve this problem by telling your daughter any particular thing. The fact is, as you can see even from her pre-school days, she has significant problems in her social interactions, both with adults and peers.

If this situation is to improve, it is imperative that you seek professional help. Your daughter needs help around her behavior both within and outside the home, and you and her relatives need help in how to interact with her. Without knowing it, you have unwittingly contributed to the problem over the years, but it is not too late to change the direction in which things are moving. But you will certainly not accomplish this on your own, because your daughter's behavior is clearly considerably outside the norms for her age. Please sek help - you will be pleased if you do.