“We would like to have more children, but everything is very expensive and I have to work full time.’
Usually, I would be pleased to hear a friend say that they are done having children and their family is complete.
I am childless, so it would be a fair assumption that friends who have children is a complicated subject for me. Yes, I miss the days when quick drinks accidentally turned into getting home at 3am, and I complain that WhatsApp groups are now just baby pictures. But for loved ones to achieve their dream of having children is a great thing.
So my friend’s comment should have made me celebrate that we would soon be back to impromptu dinners once they were out of the newborn stage.
Instead, I felt sad for him.
Condom production has increased by 20-30% due to the Iran War
The world’s biggest condom maker is raising prices by up to 30%, and owner Goh Miah Kiat says the Iran war is to blame. Also stating a greater demand for their condoms due to the ongoing crisis, which is causing instability in people and making them more inclined to prevent pregnancy.
You can read about Metro’s report on it here.
There is a big difference between ‘no more children for us!’ and ‘external circumstances beyond our control mean we do not feel able to have more children’.
One is a joyful realization, a goal accomplished. The other is unhappy acceptance.
Continuous the cost of living crisis has withdrawn the decision. People just cannot afford to have more than one or two childrenand some have none at all.
Everyday household items like detergent, medications, toys and even condoms are more expensive.
It’s a situation I wrote about the back in the year 2022.
My personal realization was, even if I wanted children, the post-pandemic cost of living crisis would make parenting impossible for me. I feel strongly about being absolutely certain that I can afford to have a child. Having grown up with money problems, I would like to make sure that I can provide a stable comfortable and safe education.
At the time many friends and family were dismissive, I heard it all: ‘it’s hard but just go with it’, ‘it’s not that expensive’ and the classic, ‘you’ll change your mind’.
Four years later, with more global conflicts and more economic pressures, I feel more and more confident about my choice.
What was supposed to be a short-term cost of living crisis is now simply the norm. And, The US-Israel war against Iran THERE pushed budgets beyond what is manageable. Of course, it is the Iranian people who have been most and brutally affected by the war. In the UK, we are lucky. We do not live in a war zone.
Instead, our lives are affected financially.
Our energy bills had already gone up significantly since the Russian invasion Ukraine. Now they are even higher. Food prices are rising. Weekly supermarket shops are more expensive and travel costs are affected. Petrol and diesel prices jumped sharply.
Vacations have always been fun, but now they’re even more elusive airlines cancel flights and add surcharges due to rising fuel costs.
According to the think tank Resolution Foundation, the living standards of an average UK household were on track for a 0.9% increase. This is expected to decrease by 0.6% this financial year due to the war.
The Generations and Gender Survey, released shortly before the start of the US-Israeli war with Iran, found that a growing number of young people are choosing not to have children.
Unsurprisingly, the main reasons for this are attributed to high childcare costs, the cost of living crisis and concerns about the world their children will inherit.
I’m definitely seeing more people choosing to be childless. When I first told people I didn’t want children, it was unusual. Now I have a group of friends without kids.
Despite many years of grumbling about Birthrates at ‘all-time lows’there hasn’t been any significant effort to actually help millennials and Gen Z become parents. We need a place where families can thrive. Funded childcare, more support for working parents, prioritizing affordable housing and tackling the cost of living crisis head on.
Do world events and cost-of-living crises influence your personal decisions to have children?
I’ve known for a long time that I would be more financially secure, more fulfilled, and less sleep deprived if I remained childless. I always wondered what would happen when I got older, especially when I hit my late 30s—decades that everyone assured me would change my mind.
In reality, my 30s have been one unprecedented national and international event after another. I’m as happy child-free as I’ve ever been. My biological clock clearly has no battery, but even if it could tick, it couldn’t be louder than the ever-increasing economic, political and environmental crises.
Have a story you’d like to share? Contact by sending email M.Navarrogriffiths@metro.co.uk.
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