30 Child-Free People That Ended Up Having Kids Reveal Why And How It Worked Out

This is a hard one. Because some days it feels so worth it, but other days I just feel like I f****d up. It's 100% a mixed bag for me. I'm not the person I was before having a kid, and I miss that person so much. She'll never come back. So I can get regretful of stuff like that. On the flip side, sometimes it's just so amazing to watch your kid grow and learn. But she drives me nuts too lol

My husband and I have been married for almost 12 years. We married really young and originally he wanted to have kids right away. I told him no because even though I had just finished my undergraduate degree, I wanted to travel and eventually go back to school for my graduate degree. Because of his job, we end up moving to Europe. We loved it and traveled so much and enjoyed every minute of it. During that time we went back and forth on having kids but "ultimately" deciding we didn't want them because we didn't want the added expense, time commitment, etc.,. We end up moving back to the US, and I start my graduate degree. During that time I cannot shake the feeling of wanting to have a kid. I bring this up to him and he says he's been feeling the same way. Mind you, during this time we're still happy and in love and nothing is essentially "missing" from our marriage. The love and trust is still there and we're both still having fun after so many years. After having a long and in-depth conversation about having a child, we decided to go for it. Our son was born in the middle of the pandemic in 2020 and I absolutely do not regret it. Yes this experience has changed our lives, but for the best He's taught me that life is more than my career (I use to be a workaholic), how to have boundaries at work, patience, how to break generational curses, and how to be a better partner to my husband. My son has also brought both me and my husband closer to our parents and siblings. I'm so excited to teach him about life and hope to have a good relationship with him well into his adult years.

I never wanted kids, ever.

Then my girlfriend and I had one.

And it’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me.

Sure, there are days when I’m tired, or frustrated, and he’s not listening, or misbehaving and I think I’m at my limit.

But then there’s days where I teach him about “why he has to share the sun with other people” (he wants it to be light out all day/night) or I watch him learn new words reading books or singing songs, or I see him perform tasks I didn’t know he was capable of, or he tells me about the oceans or shells or bugs that he learned about in daycare.

And it’s so f*****g cool to watch him learn new things, figure things out and learn about the world.

I wouldn’t trade it for anything. Your mileage may vary.

Was dead set on not having kids before marrying my wife, and even post marriage it took a lot of internal growth to become comfortable with it.

There are distinct sacrifices you'll make;

Drastically less personal time (it'll shrink a bit just by getting a partner, and then the kid will eat into it further).

Drastically less income, much of it will go towards your partner and your kid with only the scraps left for yourself.

Drastically less mobility, kids are a massive chore to manage; it's an extra bag to pack, often two, more overall concern for safety, and circling back to costs eventually it's an extra ticket.

Was it a good decision? Up to the individual, there are days I wonder but the kiddo ultimately does make me happy and it makes my wife extremely happy.

To me, my son grounded my life a bit; I don't want to say "gave it purpose" or "meaning" because I had/have a good career and I found fulfillment from that but like a pet can enrich our lives so can our kids (to an even greater extent).

Still young into the journey of raising my son (he is only 11 months old) but I would imagine once he is talking and expressing more of his own opinion it'll get better (and maybe those hard days, harder).

Do I regret it? No, but I totally understand those that don't want one either.

Never wanted kids, met my husband, decided we would make some great kids. So we had one. Adamant about being one and done the whole pregnancy. I was sick every day. ER twice for dehydration. My son is 7 months old and we're planning on one more. I miss things but definitely no regrets.

I never intended to have kids. My "the one" had one and I took her in as my own at her age of 1.5

Fast forward 5 years and we had a big oopsie. Now we have our own flesh and blood daughter. It was a brutal experience because she was cholicy and had ADHD.

But my daughters (19 and 24 respectively) are both the most amazing women and I couldn't be more proud of them and of being their dad/step-dad.

My youngest [my daughter] and I are best friends. 🥰

I never wanted children. I think I was one of the most vocal people in my environment about disliking children and never wanting that level of restriction on my freedom.

But then I turned 28, and something just changed in me. So I decided to have one.. and surprisingly, I love everything about being a parent. Now, I don’t do the whole mom identity thing and all that, and most my friends don’t have kids still. But I do know I want 3 children now, and feel like having kids has been the most meaningful and enjoyable thing I’ve done in my life. I am currently expecting baby #2 and really exited about getting to relive all the baby stages again. I totally did a 180 in other words!

The best thing that ever happened to me was becoming a father. My son gave me the structure I needed and the purpose to not just grow up, but to finally realize this life was about something greater than myself. He's 17 now and I literally couldn't be prouder of who he has become. I think about my life and honestly, I might not even be here if he wasn't born.

I never wanted kids and neither did my husband. Got married at 25 and 27, then at 27 and 29 we both suddenly wanted kids. I’m so f*****g grateful that we both changed our minds, we really lucked out in that regard. 2 kids later and I couldn’t be happier that we did.

I have a step son who was 5 when I met him. He’s 23 and always seeks me out to show me love. I always wanted a baby girl and it sucks I lost that chance.