6 Questions To Ask Yourself If You're Not Sure You Want Kids
Oct 23, 2017
Writing a guest post for Refinery29.com allowed me to share two of my most fundamental beliefs with their many readers:
1. Understanding the WHY of why you want to have children is as important as understanding the "how" and the "when."
2. It is okay -- and recommended -- to ponder "why" or "if" you have the desire to have a child before you make a momentous, life-changing decision.
Refinery29 has a Health section, titled "Mothership", with the tagline: "Our many paths to, through, and away from parenting. Because motherhood is a big if — not when — and it's time we talked about it that way." I love that a major media outlet is finally starting to redefine motherhood and how women should perceive it. I'm proud to say that my article is part of this section.
Below is an excerpt and a link to the full article:
6 Questions To Ask Yourself If You're Not Sure You Want Kids
by Ann Davidman for Refinery29
How many major life decisions are you expected to “just know” in advance? You put time and growth into your career — and sometimes change course. Choosing a partner can take a lifetime of trial-and-error. So why is it women are expected to “just know” whether they’ll someday want kids?
Feeling indecisive, and feeling bad about yourself because of it, only makes finding clarity even more difficult. If you’re ambivalent, you’re definitely not alone. After more than 25 years of helping women make this life-defining decision, and listening to them describe how tortured they feel for not knowing one way or the other, I can tell you there are more of you than you know.
Part of the difficulty for many people is getting bogged down in the how part of the decision, as in, how might a child come into my life? Before you can entertain whether you’ll someday have a biological child; adopt; become a single parent, part-time parent, co-parent, or step-parent, you need to know if you want to become a parent at all. You need to know whether you want to raise the next generation and why. The why is important — not because you owe anyone an explanation or need to defend your position, but so that you know what’s driving your desire.
And turning to your friends or loved ones won’t necessarily help. When people don’t know whether they want kids or would rather pursue a childfree life, they tend to poll people, and then the question becomes more of a debate about which choice is “better.” This may include looking at external factors, such as your age, career, where you live, whether you’re partnered or single, whether you have a certain amount of money saved, and so forth. But this line of thinking doesn’t get you any closer to knowing what you want.
Others can only tell you about their experience; no one can tell you what it will be like for you, just as no one can tell you what’s true for you. The six questions ahead can get you closer to knowing what is... (Click to continue reading.)
