The decision to have children is personal, and should not be taken lightly. So many people feel like they have to have kids because “it's just what you do.” There is always the chance that you will regret not having children. Having children, just in case, is a lot of work and responsibility.
Research shows that there is a “happiness bump” that parents experience right after a baby is born. But that tends to dissipate over the course of a year, Glass says. After that point in time, the levels of happiness of parents and non-parents gradually diverge, with non-parents generally growing happier over time.
It's normal to experience a range of emotions about the decision to not have children, including sometimes feeling sadness, regret, or self-doubt. If these feelings become overwhelming or start to have a negative impact on your life or mental health, consider speaking with a therapist.
Having a child is an impactful life event. In addition to the schedule changes and expenses associated with raising a child, there is also a woman's own health to consider. Research shows that not having kids can raise the risk of certain health issues, like breast cancer.
It's unfolding over many years." But in Chrastil's view, childless couples tend to be adaptive and resilient, and most don't sit around harboring regrets. Childless couples tend to develop "strong social relationships such as with friends and family, including nieces and nephews," she says.
Childless women are 46% more likely to report high depression compared to mothers. Among both men and women, being formerly married is related to greater loneliness and depression. These results demonstrate the greater salience of childlessness for women compared to men.
Left-behind children have a lower cognitive test score and academic test score, and they are also less likely to attend a college. In particular, a mother's absence seems to have persistent negative effects on children's development.
The major disadvantages are lack of companionship/being alone/loneliness, lack of support and care when older, and missing the experience of parenthood.
In the first year, childless couples were more than three times as likely to get divorced as couples who had a baby. After that, the 'divorce risk' curve flattened out, and after 12 years the researchers could no longer see a significant difference between couples who had babies and those who did not.
5. What percentage of American couples are childless? A staggering 57% of American households are child-free.
“[W]e found no evidence that older child-free adults experience any more life regret than older parents,” Jennifer Watling Neal, the co-author of the study, said in a statement. “In fact, older parents were slightly more likely to want to change something about their life.”
Some people don't desire to have children, which can be normal. Not everyone is born with a parental instinct or desire. Some people want to focus on their individual goals, mental health, or other areas of life. For some people, goals for the future don't align with having a family.
The idea of bringing another human into the world and the joy of seeing that person go through life is another powerful reason why couples want to have a child. Parents want to see their child grow up and become a productive member of society.
Being childfree, you have the ability to take full control over your life and pursue your personal and professional goals. Life is about living life to the fullest. Take advantage of your freedom and independence; choose to live child-free! When you have children, often the things we love are put on hold.
It's completely normal that some people, both men and women, won't desire children in their lifetime, Ambardar says. Even if this life choice is still viewed as unconventional in society, it's important that people who are contemplating a child-free life avoid conforming just to fit in.
Allow yourself to notice and appreciate the things about your life that perhaps you wouldn't be able to enjoy if you had been able to have children. This doesn't dismiss your longing or love for your children who died or never were.
A woman's peak reproductive years are between the late teens and late 20s. By age 30, fertility (the ability to get pregnant) starts to decline. This decline happens faster once you reach your mid-30s. By 45, fertility has declined so much that getting pregnant naturally is unlikely.
Childless men and women have an overall higher mortality than adults with children, meaning that they die earlier, recent studies show.