20 good reasons not to have children if you cant handle it

There are many great reasons to have kids, from unconditional love to a sense of meaning in your life. But there are also many good reasons not to have children. Here are 20 of them.

20 good reasons not to have children

There are many great reasons to have kids, from unconditional love to a sense of meaning in your life. But there are also many good reasons not to have children. Here are 20 of them

Kids are bad for your romantic relationship

As reported by CNN, your romantic relationship will suffer once you have children. In fact, researchers have found that the “rate of the decline in relationship satisfaction is nearly twice as steep for couples who have children than for childless couples.” The reason? Instead of being lovers, you’re now parents, and your focus tends to be on your children, not your spouse.

Kids cost a lot of money

Raising kids isn’t cheap, especially in our modern, developed world. For many, the high price tag of having a baby is a major deterrent. According to MarketWatch, “As of 2015, American parents spend, on average, $233,610 on child costs from birth until the age of 17, not including college.”

Kids will make you sleep-deprived

Kids, especially newborns, can keep you up at night. But it’s not just newborns—older children get sick, have nightmares, need to go to the bathroom. It’s no wonder that, according to researchers as reported by The Guardian, new parents “face up to six years of sleep deprivation.”

Kids are bad for your sex life

It’s a well-known fact that sexual intimacy tends to decline after you have a baby. First off, doctors suggest that women abstain from intercourse for four to six weeks after childbirth. Even after this wait time, women may still experience pain during sex. Desire can also take a nosedive due to fatigue, hectic schedules, and a negative body image.

Kids are terrible for the environment

According to one study, as reported by The Independent, “Having children is the most destructive thing a person can do to the environment.” Forget feeling bad about driving that SUV—having a child is the most polluting thing you can do. According to researchers in Sweden, you can save 58.6 tonnes of CO₂-equivalent emissions per year, per child you don’t have. By comparison, giving up your car will save you just 2.4 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent a year.

Babies make a lot of trash

Every year, babies in North America are responsible for using 30 to 40 billion disposable diapers that end up in landfills. In the United Kingdom, an estimated three billion diapers are thrown away every year. The thought is enough to make you not want to have kids.

Kids can hurt your earning power

It’s unfair, but it’s true: having kids can negatively affect parents’—especially women’s—salaries. According to the U.S. Census Bureau as reported in Today’s Parent, women who have children between the ages of 25 and 35 are most affected by the gender wage gap. Why? Because young children and young careers are both highly demanding.

Kids can make it tough to get an education

According to the same source, women who have babies very early or very late are less affected by the gender wage gap. However, there’s a catch: women who have children too early “tend to be less-educated lower earners.”

Kids can cause you to lose friends

Due to a lack of time, busy schedules, and changing priorities, kids can have a negative impact on even your closest friendships, causing them to “change or even dissolve altogether.”

Kids are bad for your health

According to researchers from the University of Minnesota, as reported by Time magazine, “Mothers consume more calories and get less physical activity than women with no kids.” Although the men also had negative outcomes after becoming fathers, the data was particularly worrisome for mothers, who had a higher BMI, ate less healthy food, and consumed more sugary drinks, total calories, and saturated fat. Both parents also exercised less than people without children.

Kids are bad for your mental health

According to several studies, as reported in The Atlantic, “Parents are at risk for depression, [and] they are less happy than their childless counterparts. While many assume that having children is the key to happiness, there is evidence that proves the contrary—in fact, depression appears to be a common side effect of having children.

Kids can stress you out

There’s little doubt that kids can really stress their parents out, from demanding all your time and attention to putting stress on your pocketbook. According to a study published in Science News, “When the daily stress of parenting becomes chronic, it can turn into burnout,” which can have serious consequences for parents and children alike.

Kids can damage your social life

Kids can make it tough to have a social life in many ways: you’re too tired to stay up late or go out, you can’t afford a babysitter, and you can’t afford to have a hangover because you have to be up at the crack of dawn the next morning.

Kids can lead to divorce

If it’s true that your romantic relationship will suffer once you have children, then, if left unchecked, this decline could eventually lead to divorce. The small upside? Parents may be dissatisfied in their marriage but, ironically, the likelihood of them actually getting divorced declines. Perhaps because they feel they must stay together for the children, despite being unhappy.

Kids contribute to climate change

Although the recent school strikes for the climate have inspired millions around the world to get serious about taking action on climate change, it’s no small irony that, at the same time, the number of kids being driven to school has spiked in recent decades, contributing to climate change. According to Ontario’s transit agency Metrolinx, as reported in the Globe and Mail, “the percentage of 11- to 13-year-olds walking to school in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area nearly halved between 1986 and 2016, while the number of kids being driven in cars nearly tripled.”

Kids kill your “me time”

According to a study reported in the Daily Mail, the average mom has just 17 minutes to herself a day. That’s right, not even a full half-hour. Why? Because today’s moms work, raise the children, and do the lion’s share of the housework, meaning there’s no time left for themselves.

Kids’ education costs a fortune

If you want your kids to succeed in life, you’ll likely want them to go to a good school and off to college. Be prepared to spend a lot of money to make that happen. In the United States, the average cost of private school is $12,218 per year. The average total cost of public college per year in the U.S. is $25,290 (in-state) and $40,940 (out-of-state). The average total cost of private college per year in the U.S. is $50,900. Start saving!

Kids don’t move out these days

Think your parental duties end when your kids turn 18? Think again! With the high cost of living, an increasing number of young people are opting to live with their parents well into their 20s and 30s.

Kids wreck your car

Once your kids are old enough to drive, be prepared for them to borrow your car and bring it back in less-than-perfect condition. Young, newly licensed drivers are at higher risk of having a crash than older, more experienced drivers. The takeaway? Forget the fancy car. Opt for a beater until the kids have moved out. If they ever move out, that is.

Kids ruin your clothes

If you enjoy high fashion and fancy clothes, kids may not be for you. From sticky fingers covered in chocolate and accidental vomiting to snotty noses, kids are filthy and tend to share their filth with those they love most—their parents! There’s a reason why so many parents opt for sweatpants.