Childfree by choice
To baby or not to baby?
Being childfree is still one of the oldest taboos, and some women who choose not to have children feel regularly judged by others and suffer push back from society and friends. They feel they are denied the status of being ‘real’ women because they have made the decision not to be mothers.
But parenthood is not the only path to a happy, productive life and more people than ever are choosing to forgo it. In fact 1 in 5 women in the UK over 45 don’t have children, a much bigger number than most people realise.
It is time to remove the stigma and openly discuss a choice that many are taking.
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Footloose and childfree
(29 mins )
Grow up, find a partner, have kids, we’ve been doing it for thousands of years. But more and more women are choosing to ignore that path. And the latest research says they’re actually happier for it. So why do we judge women without kids?
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PODCASTS
Sian Harries and Grace Dent are ambivalent about motherhood
(14 mins )
Comedy writer Sian Harries and columnist and broadcaster Grace Dent discuss that strange taboo for women – ambivalence towards motherhood. Should Sian make the decision to have a baby or not to? And she wonders will she regret somewhere down the line not having them. She and Grace talk about how other people can make you feel when you haven’t got children.
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Expectations with Emma Gannon
(31 mins)
In Emma’s debut novel, Olive, her eponymous heroine dares to articulate that she doesn’t want to have children, only to find that it remains taboo. Waterstones spoke with Emma about choosing to be childfree, choosing fiction to express it, and the special bonds of female friendship.
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The Never Mum
(38 mins)
Naomi (To Baby Or Not To Baby Podcast) speaks to Hollie who knew from a young age that she never wanted children. They discuss: how her decision affects the people in her life, the stigma that comes with not wanting to be a parent, the frustration of your biological clock. Discussion starts at 7 mins.
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VIDEOS
Would I be happier without kids?
(13 mins)
It’s the biggest decision you’ll ever have to make, but what if becoming a parent is something you’re just not sure about? With the costs, environmental consequences and potential sacrifices of bringing up children, would women be happier if they didn’t have kids? Off Limits looks at becoming a parent, discusses the pressures on women to have children and asks if women would be happier if they never had children.
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Being childfree by choice: five women on why they decided not to have kids
(7 mins )
As part of the Guardian’s Childfree series, five women discuss why having children isn’t for them – and how others perceive them as a result. ‘There’s no wrong way to be a woman,’ says Sabrina, 25.
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Should we kid or not?
(7 mins )
Two women in their early ’30s have a powerful conversation about their reproductive choices: Lizbeth, married, Mexican American and from a Catholic family, is unsure if she wants kids; while Ann Marie, from a Jamaican family for whom having kids is a given, has one young child, and wants more. See how each deals with family and cultural expectations when it comes to having kids.
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Childless: why is society so frightened of women without children?
(3 mins )
The proportion of women not having children before the menopause has reached a record high in the last decade. Here, women from the UK, France and Spain discuss the taboo of childlessness that they say comes from a dated societal structure and celebrate International Women’s Day by affirming female identity beyond motherhood.
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ARTICLES
Childfree by choice: stop telling me I’ll change my mind later
+Saying a woman will regret it returns to the idea of motherhood as the natural position and anything else as deviant. Tory Shepherd for The guardian
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Don’t know if you want a baby? This is how I found my answer
+Kerry Eustace didn’t know whether she wanted to be a mother, so she consulted people from all walks of life to find her answer
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10 Women Look Back On Living Childfree By Choice
+With the clarity of hindsight www.Self.com talked to 10 women, now past childbearing age, about their decision not to have children to help inform and support younger women making a similar choice.
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People who don’t have children benefit our environment more than any campaign
+Society should also acknowledge that those who choose not to have children are making a valuable contribution to a sustainable future. It’s time to celebrate them. Simon Ross for The Independent.
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