The decision whether or not to have children is intensely personal. There are dozens of reasons for and against – reasons that may or may not change with age or circumstance. With more and more options as far as birth control and career paths, options for single people to feel fulfilled in other ways, and the like, we’re seeing more young people consciously decide to live child-free lives.
If you can’t fathom this choice but want to understand, here are 16 people willing to explain (even though they really don’t have to).
16. The Man has no one to blame but himself.
Bravo to the kids for making smart and thoughtful decisions.
It's almost like if you saddle a generation with massive debt, then hit them with the 2nd economic crisis of their working lives, while simultaneously showing how little your society cares about children or care-giving, they will make choices accordingly https://t.co/01NoUOZSN0
— Leah Greenberg (@Leahgreenb) May 5, 2021
15. Financial reasons are a big one.
They factor into this decision way more than they did twenty or fifty years ago.
I have four kids, aged 24-30. All have plans to never have children because of money.
The two youngest live with me and have responsible adult jobs that at their age would have paid me enough to live independently, and would have made life-long careers for my parents.— ʞɹɐןɔ uɐɥʇɐuoɾ – stop rejecting objective reality. (@urlnotfound) May 5, 2021
14. This is not hyperbole.
And that’s just for a normal, no complication birth.
Why would I wanna give birth if the hospital bill is my yearly rent??
— Big Red “ Dirt mommy” (@HufflepuffLord) May 5, 2021
13. Young adults have so much more to consider now.
Where do they even start?
If your "why is the birthrate decreasing" story doesn't talk about student debt, untenable childcare and healthcare costs, housing costs, patriarchy & the enduring unequal distribution of labor in the home it is not a good "why is the birthrate decreasing" story
— Anne Helen Petersen (@annehelen) May 5, 2021
12. A short checklist.
This is only the beginning.
✔️ No universal healthcare
✔️ No universal parental leave
✔️ Stagnant wages
✔️ Inflated real estate market
✔️ Terrible work/life balance (time off)
🤷♂️🤷🏼♀️🤷🏿♀️🤷🏽♂️— Piss hissing dong (@uncivilobedient) May 5, 2021
11. Asking for help is frowned upon, you know.
The necessary village has all but disappeared.
Gotta love the world
World: you woman have baby
Woman: I can’t take care of one
World: no do it
Woman: ok I did. Can I have help?
World: no you should of thought about that before having a baby
— ComicBooksPlus (@4ColorCrack) May 6, 2021
10. There’s no hiding this fact anymore.
You don’t have to be a detective to figure it out.
https://twitter.com/tanzinavega/status/1389893009874071552?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1389893009874071552%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fgod.dailydot.com%2Fwhy-women-arent-having-babies-birth-rate%2F
9. You can’t have your cake and eat it, too.
I hate that expression but in this case, it fits.
Them: Don’t have kids if you can’t afford it!
Also them: WHY IS THE BIRTHRATE DECLINING??— Miss B (@MissBGause) May 5, 2021
8. Don’t underestimate the lure of financial security.
People don’t want to live paycheck to paycheck – with a kid – if they don’t have to.
Image Credit: Bored Panda
7. I don’t want to should be a valid response.
You don’t owe anyone an excuse as to why not.
https://twitter.com/lyta_gold/status/1390008777278214150?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1390008777278214150%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fgod.dailydot.com%2Fwhy-women-arent-having-babies-birth-rate%2F
6. In a nutshell.
A very direct nutshell, which is the best kind.
It’s almost as if the constant attacks on women healthcare is having a negative effect on our population
Plus, they rail against immigration, even though it would offset the population decline while providing an able-body & willing workforce
Self-defeating cycle of stupidity
— AvgJoe (@BVJoehnk) May 5, 2021
5. Everyone is better off this way.
Except maybe society in 50 years, but that’s not your problem.
as a mom i firmly believe one of the most generous things you can do for your community is to not have kids you don’t want. 💕
— Tori Williams Douglass (@ToriGlass) May 5, 2021
4. It’s not easy.
But the solution is simple.
also maybe fix climate change DUH
— ely kreimendahl (@ElyKreimendahl) May 5, 2021
3. They actually are thinking of others.
Even those kids who are yet to exist.
Both of my kids don’t want kids. Son is 34 daughter is 30. They both say they don’t want to raise children because of #1 government #2 climate change. They both think that we are killing our planet and each other
— Robin Kirk-Tillitson (@sinnamarie) May 5, 2021
2. The difference between wanting and being able to have responsibly.
It is heartbreaking, and we’re all going to pay the price eventually.
It’s breaking my heart as my friends who wanted kids, but couldn’t afford them, start to reach the end of their fertility.
They’re grieving, hard.
— Jessica Lee (@JessLeeEsq) May 5, 2021
1. To be fair, it is a sign of a declining society.
But we’re not going to fix that problem by forcing people who don’t want them to have children.
the declining birth rate in our country has forced me to ask myself a couple tough questions such as “who cares” and “so what”
— fluent in sarcasm😈 (@YuckyTom) May 5, 2021
These are really good reasons. There are also excellent reasons to have children, so to each their own!
Beautiful, isn’t it?