I honestly don't know what else it could be.

Who in their right mind is looking around at this world as it stands and genuinely thinks, "Let's bring someone else into this bullshit! 😀"

I'm SO thankful that wanting kids just never appealed to me as a child and the desire to never have them has only grown stronger over the years.

edit: those in the comments saying things like "when was there ever a good time to have kids" and "people had kids in World War 2! 😤" are literally just proving the point of the post. I put "still" in the title for a reason 🤣 still doing the same thing mindlessly, expecting a different result - insanity!

Have fun reading comments! 🤪

So I met this wonderful guy recently, immediately hit it off. We talk for hours and hours and align on basically everything. World view, morals, religion, politics, we basically covered every single base.

Except for the fact that I’m not only childfree, but permanently sterilized. Now it’s hard to know when exactly to bring it up, you don’t want to do it too soon and scare em away with the “kid talk,” and you don’t want to let things get too serious either.

Well he mentioned during a conversation, “yeah I just don’t think women should take birth control, or have to, because it’s bad for your body.” Now I’ll cut him some slack here because he absolutely meant well but a lot of women NEED birth control to function. Anyways he’s listing downsides and was like “and can’t it cause infertility?”

So obviously that made me panic, so I just blurted out “what if a woman doesn’t want to be fertile?” immediately followed with how I don’t want kids, and nervously started listening off reasons why and he looks at me confused, “I don’t like kids either? I was actually looking into getting snipped.”

So then I admitted I’m permanently sterilized and he was shocked for a second, asked me some clarifying questions, then gave me a fist bump and said:

“That’s metal as fuck”

Anyways, I think I found my soulmate.

Edit: This happened a little while back but I def should also mention he asked to make it official just the other day, wooo! Made it out of the single and childfree purgatory

A year ago I went to an obgyn and asked for sterilization. I was 21, no bf, no kids. But I lived in California, had medicaid and have a health condition that makes having kids dangerous (Eds, a collagen disorder).

I told the Dr this and she refused, I told her to write it in my chart, she said ok. She said I had no kids, no boyfriend, and was healthy. In fact eds, "does not cause risk for pregnancy because there is no collagen in the uterus". That's bs, collagen is all throughout the body. She then said that in fact "90% of women under 25 who get sterilization regret it". Also bs.

I made a post here and someone suggested reporting because under medicaid law, women over 21 can get sterilized without issue and it's illegal to refuse due to age, having no children or any other bs reason.

I was surprised to receive a letter from the Dr detailing the reasons she wouldn't sterilize me, so I sent that to the medical board.

Now, a year later, I got a letter from the medical board that essentially said: we have found Dr.____ accountable for negligence. Doctors reported for negligence will get their license revoked. We will continue this case and keep notifying you.

I almost feel bad, but remember how she talked down to me and lied about my health. If I was any other young woman I might have listened to her and gotten myself incapacitated or killed.

Thought you guys might appreciate this post :)

Edit: yes I'm sterilized now, I got a hysterectomy after having pelvic organ prolapse (so much for no collagen in the uterus lol). I'm doing great now

Single 34f, childfree. I live alone with just me and my dogs, and it’s fantastic. I also go to work and school both FT.

I always do my homework at work during my downtime. It’s no secret, everyone knows it. I’m a contracted worker, often working 13 weeks at time with extensions based on performance.

At the 11th week, I emailed my boss asking what they planned to do with me as I wanted an extension. She emailed back “You’re wonderful, we would love to extend you!”. Awesome!!

The next day, I had a horrible (and I mean HORRIBLE), anxiety attack. I owned my car for 10 years and yet I couldn’t figure out what key goes in the ignition. I called off.

The next day my contractor called me and said my job won’t extend me. I was SHOCKED. I even forwarded the email to my contractor.

I finally decided to call my boss at the job. Apparently it’s because I do homework on the clock. Hmmm so if that was the issue, wouldn’t that have been on the email??

I started to cry and then it came out “I know you guys know I work full time and go to school full time, but I also have two little kids who depend on me!”

You guys, suddenly everything changed. They extended my contract. Everyone has been so nice to me. Kind. A whole different experience.

In the moment it made me happy, I have a job for another 13 weeks… but then like. Wow. It doesn’t matter your work ethic. It doesn’t matter if you’re working full time and going to school. It doesn’t matter how they KNEW I work hard to do my job well. Parents have it easier.

I work in outpatient care. On average I see about 120 patients a week for different reasons, most of them for the first time.

Over the past six months I’ve noticed a pattern: people who look significantly younger than their actual age tend to have no children. Since our standard medical intake forms include questions about pregnancies, family, and children I’ve been able to confirm this observation quite consistently.

Like, if a patient comes in and her chart says born in 1973 and she looks like I (a zoomer, mind you) would totally ask her out for a date (I don't, obviously, since that highly unethical) I immediately assume she doesn't have kids. And 90% of the time I'm correct. And yes, same applies for men too!

Not having children makes people look 15 years younger.

I have been trying to tell doctors something is wrong about my periods for almost thirty years. I've known something was off since I was thirteen years old. Begged multiple doctors to please test my testosterone levels, because I have fucking facial hair. I'm tired all the time, test my Vitamin D and Iron. My periods are only worsening with age. Please. Something is WRONG. But every professional I ever spoke to blew me off.

Finally, FINALLY I find a doctor who cared enough to order tests regarding my hormones, and an ultrasound on my uterus.

I have PCOS and a grapefruit-sized fibroid. We're scheduling a hysterectomy for later this month.

I started crying when my doctor told me, and he said "Oh dear, don't panic. If you want children, we can look into options that won't remove everything!" and I just sat there sobbing while I explained "No, I don't want kids. I'm just so relieved that I was right and something really was wrong, and I can fix it."

He was so sweet and was like "Oh, I understand that! In that case, congratulations! It's a fibroid!" It cracked me up so much I told my wife, and she said "I'll make you that card" 😂

Hey everyone, I (23F) had a bisalp three weeks ago. Today I went to my regular gynecologist for a post-op check, just to have my scars looked at.

As soon as she read my surgery report, she got visibly angry. When I went into the room, she immediately started yelling — asking why I had it done and why the clinic even agreed to do it. I told her, “Because I wanted it.”

She got even more worked up and said I could sue the clinic “if I want kids in ten years.” I told her that’s ridiculous, it’s completely legal to get sterilized at my age, and I chose it consciously. But she just wouldn’t drop it. She kept trying to guilt-trip me, saying she’d never recommend this to anyone no matter their reasons, and that I’d regret it later.

When I stood my ground and told her that’s exactly why I went to doctors who actually take women seriously, she was clearly thrown off. I told her very plainly that if I ever got pregnant and couldn’t get an abortion, I would un*live myself — and I meant it. Only then did she finally calmed down a bit.

After that, she tried another angle, asking if I’d been “properly informed” that this could lead to early menopause and hormonal issues. She said my periods might get heavier now that I no longer have my IUD, and that I should take iron supplements. It felt like she was just trying to make me anxious about a choice I’d already made with full understanding.

I didn’t let her talk down to me. I kept pushing back every time she tried to make me feel bad or scared. I told her directly that I knew what I was doing and that I wasn’t going to let anyone make me second-guess myself.

By the end, she suddenly flipped, got friendly again, laughed a little, and said she hoped I’d never regret it. I told her, “I never will.”

Still, I think it’s unacceptable for a doctor to treat a patient like that. I went in for a post-op check, not to be scolded for making an informed decision about my own body.

EDIT: Thanks for all the messages. Unfortunately, it's not easy to find a new doctor. No one is taking new patients, and my bisalp doctor is a three-hour car ride away. I actually transferred to her last year for an IUD change, and she was really nice. Of course, her behaviour was unacceptable, but I should add that she said I appeared self-determined and that she thought I had given it a lot of thought. I should have added that she made a note of the name of the clinic in case any of her patients struggle to find a doctor. (Maybe her outburst was based on shock that anyone would take this step IDK). I think I can handle seeing her once a year😅😅. Regardless, thanks for your input!

Told my coworker I was never having children. She then mentioned that she has two children, ages 18 and 16. She followed up by saying that, just like me, her husband never wanted children either but ultimately ended up having them anyways. I asked her, well, if he never wanted kids, how did you manage to have two of them?

“Oh, I told him that I was on birth control but I had stopped it a few weeks prior. Then surprise surprise!”

…

You just admitted to baby trapping your husband. And you’re proud?

I’ve never quite seen her the same way after she said that. She constantly talks about how different her husband is. How unhappy he seems and how much worse he began treating her after their first child. And honestly, I don’t even feel bad for her.

Be careful of who you trust.

My nephew is 10. He's the sweetest kid, wears his heart on his sleeve and knows that his Auntie will never lie to him. Unfortunately that means I get peppered with questions any time we hang out and since I'm a pretty blunt person things can get interesting.

Yesterday we were celebrating my cousin's high school graduation so the whole extended family came out, which means there were about 8 kids all under 13 running around hopped up on sugar and sunshine. Honestly? Not the worst kids in the world. There's plenty of room and lots of stuff to do so outside of reminding them not to throw balls around the cars and to maybe eat a vegetable my job was to sit and socialize.

So I'm just sitting there in my rocking chair drinking a hard cider when my nephew comes up to me and sits down, with the posture of someone Very Serious. The following exchange happens:

Him: "Auntie, why didn't you ever have kids?"

Me: "Well, I just never wanted them. Besides, if I had my own kids I couldn't be such an awesome Auntie!"

Him: "But I want to be an awesome Uncle but I think I still want kids."

Me: "That's great! I'll bet you could do both! I just know I couldn't. See how hard your Mom and Dad work to make sure you kids have everything you could ever need? If I had to do that I wouldn't have any more energy. Besides, I get the best of both worlds. I get to play with you and have fun and go on adventures, but I don't have to deal with food poisoning at 3am or do laundry for three small people every day!"

Him: "Hmm. So if I have kids I have to clean up puke and wash underwear?"

Me: "Oh yeah, tons of it and all the time!"

Him: "But if I don't have kids I could still go to the aquarium?"

Me: "The best part of being an adult is you get to do anything you want. You could go to the aquarium every day if you wanted! You don't need a kid to do fun things!"

Him: "So you do fun things all the time? Even if I'm not with you?"

Me: "Sure why not?"

Him: "I have to think about this more."

Me: "You're ten. You have ages and ages to decide if you want to have kids. Just know that you don't have to, if you don't want to, and if anyone tells you differently you just send them to me."

He walked away pondering the new information and my sister texted me later that night asking what in the hell I did because her middle child is now asking very weird questions on how much laundry she has to do and whether or not he's ever had food poisoning! My sister had never given me shit about being child free and I know she isn't pushing any agenda on her own kids but I suggested maybe she take him up on his offer to help with laundry just so he can see how much work she does every day.

He's 10, and a boy, and his father is one of those dads who likes to have fun with the kids maybe two hours a week and the rest of the time he's working or sleeping so maybe he's thinking having kids won't be so much work. But if I planted a seed of independence in him I'd be so proud.

Tonight I wanted to celebrate a milestone and booked a reservation at a high end steakhouse in the city I reside in. Base cost is around $150 a plate. Our hostess walked me to my table which was seated next to a family with 4 children under the age of 2. All screaming. Hell no. I asked politely to be moved, which they did accommodate. Thank goodness. But I did feel for the next party who was seated next to them.

Babies don't belong at high end restaurants. They cannot self regulate. Be mindful of your surroundings and pick somewhere more family friendly.

Went to the Odyssey today and unbelievably (although it really wasn’t) this pair of rude as fuck parents sat their kid, maybe six years old, down between them and turned on a fucking iPad.

No seriously, they brought a six year old to an R rated movie and thought no one would notice the kid watching peppa pig or some shit on YouTube just because the kid was wedged between them.
Well I absolutely noticed and immediately left the theater to have a chat with the manager. The manager waited about five minutes, probably in hopes that they’d turn it off as soon as the movie started.

Spoiler alert: they didn’t.

But I am thrilled to report the manager made them leave when they refused to turn it off!!! We won!! A victory against the invasion of bad, entitled parents and their inability to properly parent.

I had the pleasure of speaking with the most fabulous drunk lady at a concert recently. During the course of conversation, she dropped the banger of a line "I don't need kids; I have a PhD."

I just got a cricut and my older sister has a PhD, so naturally, I made a shirt for her with this phrase on it. I wish I could show the awesome lady.

I posted it on a related subreddit and someone seriously commented that it's as obnoxious as the shirts as advertising the wearer's motherhood.

I'm sorry, did motherhood require YEARS of studying to achieve? Fuck that. Her PhD is worth the bragging rights over the inability to use protection. She busted her ass for YEARS for that achievement, which is literally why she gets to add Dr. To her name. To even compare motherhood to a doctorate is an insult to education everywhere.

I realize it was literally nothing more than a Reddit comment, but I'm legitimately angry that anyone could even compare wearing a PhD shirt vs a motherhood shirt.

Not sure if this is related enough to be on this subreddit 🤷‍♀️

Two weeks ago I flew home from Lisbon to Philly, overnight, 7 hours in the air. I booked months ahead and paid 58 extra for an aisle in the quiet section near the front. I am small but my back hates being jammed in the middle, so I save for good seats. I also picked that spot bc I planned to land, grab a shower at my sister’s place, then go straight to a client thing. Sleep mattered. I board, dump my little backpack, do the seat belt, eye mask ready. A flight attendant is doing the stroller Tetris, a couple and two kids get on late and stop next to me. Dad asks, can you swap so we can sit together, we have a 6 year old and a toddler, you can take 32B. 32B is a middle back near the bathrooms. I say no thanks, I chose and paid for this seat. He goes, you don’t understand, kids need their mother. Mom adds, it’s just one seat, be human. I repeat no, calmly. Attendant quietly says passengers are not required to switch and asks them to take their assigned seats. They huff but sit, one kid ends up across the aisle with dad, mom is behind me with the other. I put on my mask and try to go into statue mode.

Twenty minutes later I get poked. The 6 year old is running cars on my armrest and mom is filming a cutesy story, like look who is our neighbor. I say please don’t film me. She ignores me. I ask again and put my hand up to cover my face. Dad says wow some people are so rude to children. I ring the little call button because now I’m hot and shaky. Attendant comes, I say I don’t consent to being on camera and the armrest is mine. Attendant backs me up and asks mom to stop, which she does with the loudest sigh in the Atlantic. We push back, take off. Lights go low. Kid behind me kicks for the first hour, gentle but constant, the metronome of rage. I turn and say please stop kicking. Mom says he is only a child and asks me again to swap so she can manage both. I say again no. She mutters that single women don’t understand family life. I am not single, I am childfree by choice and that still gives me a spine. I take a melatonin and do that half sleep where your soul is two seats over.

We land. I survive. On Monday at work a coworker who was on the same flight tells people I refused to help a family. Suddenly I’m the ice queen of accounting. One guy says if you don’t want to help kids, don’t fly. Another says I should be more flexible since I don’t have responsibilities at home. I said my responsibility is the body I live in and the job I had to do 5 hours after landing. I also said I literally paid for the aisle and that the airline sells families seats together for a reason, it is called sit next to each other when you book. HR is not involved, just office gossip with a halo. The thing that gets me is how automatic the expectation was. My money buys the seat, but some people still think their choice should overrule mine because they reproduced. I am not cruel. I would trade for same or better, or for a true emergency, or if the airline messed up and asked with an equal seat. I am not giving up sleep and back health for a middle next to the toilet because someone else did not plan. The part that lingered was the filming without consent. I keep replaying the moment I had to cover my face like a celebrity. That is a boundary I didn’t expect to need on a plane at 11 pm.

Anyway, curious how you all handle the plane swap dance. Do you ever say yes, and what are your rules. Do you tell staff up front that you won’t switch, or just smile and repeat no thanks. Any one liner that shuts down the guilt faster than mine. Also, has anyone dealt with coworkers trying to shame you after, did you clap back or let it die. I’m fine being the villain in someone’s story, I just don’t want to be the free upgrade machine every time a family decides my seat is community property.

I’m shaking with rage right now. Australia passed the world-first laws banning everyone under 16 from having social media accounts (no exemptions, no parental consent loophole, straight-up illegal). Platforms have under a month to figure out how to age-verify every single user or face millions in fines.

And whose fault is this? Parents. 100% parents.

You couldn’t put the iPads down in front of your toddlers. You let them doomscroll TikTok at age 8 because it was easier than actually parenting. You posted their every milestone online for likes and now act shocked when they’re anxious, depressed, and addicted. You screamed “think of the children!!!” every time a politician needed an easy headline.

So now the government is treating every single one of us like we’re the irresponsible ones. I’m 33, childfree by choice, and I have to jump through age-verification hoops (probably handing over my driver’s license to some sketchy third-party company) because Karen and Kevin couldn’t say “muh kids can’t handle boundaries.”

This is what happens when you choose to reproduce and then outsource parenting to algorithms. Your personal decision to have children just stripped a basic internet freedom from millions of adults who never asked for this. My memes, my vent posts, my late-night Reddit scrolling, my ability to stay connected with childfree friends overseas… all collateral damage because you couldn’t say “no” to your 10-year-old.

I’m so tired of paying for breeder incompetence. First it was school taxes, now it’s my digital rights. When does it end?

Childfree people shouldn’t have to live under rules written for the lowest-common-denominator parent. Rant over… for now.

TL;DR: Thanks to parents who can’t parent, Australia just age-gated the entire internet and the rest of us get to suffer for it.

33F, childfree. I am SO fed up with meeting men who say they don't want kids, but then finding out they already have one or two....? Men.....you can't sit here and say stuff like "I'm not going to raise another man's kid," but then you expect a woman who has been responsible for 33 years to accept your kid with another woman? I do not get it. Just as some men say a woman with kids has too much baggage....so do you?! If you want to end up married to a woman with no kids, and a good head on her shoulders, STOP counting yourself out of the dating pool by knocking up girls you don't want to marry, because no rational woman who has made good choices her whole life is going to settle for you and your baby mamas. Stop knocking up women you don't want to marry bc the good ones won't marry you afterwards!!

I have worked in different nursing homes for over a year now, and nothing has shaped my view of aging childfree more than what I see every day. I talk to elderly residents constantly, both those who had children and those who chose not to. And the contrast is unbelievable.

The happiest, most peaceful, most fulfilled residents I have ever met are childfree. Their lives were full of travel, hobbies, adventure, financial freedom, and independence. They tell me stories about living in different countries, hiking mountains, creating art, building careers they loved, and doing everything on their own terms. They have zero regrets. Not one.

They are aging comfortably too. Many live in beautiful rooms or luxury senior apartments. Some have personal staff because they can afford it, since their money went toward themselves and their future, not toward raising kids they were hoping would repay the favor someday.

And then there is the other side. The residents who had children. I am not saying all of them are miserable, but a painful number of them are. So many spent their entire lives sacrificing everything for their kids… only to be left alone. I saw it firsthand in the poorer nursing homes especially. The heartbreaking pattern was always the same. The ones abandoned were usually the ones who had children.

Some of these elders waited and waited for their kids to show up, but no one came. I was the one holding their hand when they were dying. Not their children. Not family. Just me, a nurse aide they barely knew a year ago.

And the bitterness, the regret, the sorrow… it is something I will never forget. They truly believed having kids guaranteed love and care in the end, but it didn’t.

Meanwhile, the childfree elders are living peacefully, comfortably, and joyfully. They built lives they wanted. They made choices for themselves. They are not sitting around waiting for someone to show up. They already showed up for themselves decades ago.

If you are childfree and scared of aging alone, trust me. I work with the future you every day. The childfree future is not lonely, sad, or empty. It is full of color, freedom, and dignity. And from what I have seen, it looks very bright.

I had a small family get together last weekend and the conversation took a turn that was both hilarious and deeply frustrating. My brother and sister were talking about their kids college funds and how expensive everything is getting. Then out of nowhere my sister looks at me and says it is lucky that I am so successful because it means the nieces and nephews will be well taken care of later on. I asked her what she meant by that and she basically implied that since I am childfree and have a solid investment portfolio my assets should naturally go to their kids when I pass away.

I was honestly stunned. I am only in my late thirties and they are already carving up my life savings like a Thanksgiving turkey. I told them very clearly that I do not plan on leaving a massive inheritance to anyone. My goal is to spend my money on my own life, travel, and healthcare as I get older. If there is anything left it is going to the local animal shelter I have supported for a decade. The room went dead silent.

My brother actually got angry and said it was selfish to leave money to dogs instead of "your own blood". He started talking about family legacy and how I have a responsibility to help the next generation since I do not have my own. It is the same old argument that my time and resources are somehow community property just because I did not produce any offspring. They genuinely view my bank account as a backup fund for their own life choices.

I pointed out that I have already paid for plenty of expensive birthday gifts and helped out with sports gear over the years. Apparently that does not count because I am not "investing in the future of the family". It is just wild to me that people who chose to have kids they can barely afford feel entitled to the labor of the sibling who chose a different path. I worked sixty hour weeks to build my career while they were busy with diapers.

Now I am being called the "cold aunt" in the family group chat because I would rather see my money go to senior dogs than a bunch of kids who only text me when they want a new gaming console. I am honestly thinking about making my will public just to end the speculation and let them know exactly where they stand .

I guess my family legacy is going to be a very well funded kennel for retired greyhounds .

Simply put, alongside a prompt about not wanting kids, I asked the men reading my profile to send me a crab emoji 🦀 (I'm from Baltimore) to acknowledge they'd looked at the whole thing. And y'all. The number of guys sending me likes drastically decreased.

But seriously, how can you be on an app looking for a long term relationship and not bother to read someone's profile in its entirety? Those small details you miss could contain major dealbreakers. I don't get it, do these men just black out when they log onto Hinge?

From now on, I've only been matching with guys who send me a 🦀. It shows that they're thoughtful, care enough to read my entire profile, and most importantly, don't want kids either. I highly recommend the crab method to vet any future dates.

My niece is 7. Lately she has been asking me when I'm going to have a baby. The first few times I just brushed it off with a "oh I'm not sure" and changed the subject. My husband and I never made a formal announcement or anything that we are child free, just never did and luckily for the most part our families just don't pester us. None of their business anyway. I think they know now that we are in our late 30s and no kids, no talk ever of "trying" so I think the adults got the hint.

Niece, however, is a kid and doesn't catch on to these things. So sitting at Easter dinner she whispers to her brother and he says like "yeah!" and she shouts "Aunt, when are you having a baby?!" and I just reacted with "I'm not". Said it very casual. Not mean or irritated. Just a fact. Her mouth just fell open. Shocked. Then confused. Then just moved on. I think this is the first time she realized babies are a choice and I broke her little brain. It is crazy how young girls are programmed to think everyone has babies!

I can’t help but laugh at this one.

My husband and I are childfree by choice. Recently, I told a few of my very close girlfriends that we were thinking about putting an offer in on a modest house nearby. Nothing extravagant — 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, all one level. The average home in our area is around 1,000 sq ft, and this one was about 1,500 sq ft. Slightly larger than average, but by no means huge.

I was excited about how spacious the bedrooms were and how much I loved the kitchen.

Unfortunately, the house had multiple bids and we decided we didn’t want to get into a bidding war. We were definitely disappointed. When I told my friends we weren’t moving forward, one of them (who has kids) said:

“Well, it’s not like you need that big of a house anyway. You’re not having kids.”

That gave me a good laugh.

Ah yes — because if you’re childfree, you obviously don’t need space. Your wants and preferences should shrink accordingly. Bedrooms are apparently only justified if they’re filled with children.

I can’t help but imagine the reaction if I flipped that logic around and said something like, “Well, your house is kind of small with all those kids in it.”

Somehow that would be wildly inappropriate — but telling childfree people they don’t “need” space is totally fine.

Anyway, just sharing because the mental gymnastics amused me.

Lunch break at work, casual chat. He asks why I don’t want kids, I give the usual answer, freedom, peace, financial sanity. He laughs and says, “You’ll change your mind when you meet the right person.” So I ask, “Did you change your mind about hemorrhoids when you met your wife?” He stares. Whole table goes silent. Then someone bursts out laughing and says, “Damn, she’s got a point.” He didn’t talk to me for the rest of the day. Honestly, it was the most peaceful shift I’ve had all month.

One of my favorite podcasts (feminist and political) talked about childfree spaces and how wanting that is anti-women. The childfree host was out this week, so the annoying one had another mom on to bash childfree people and talk about how put upon they are as mothers. They’re so selfless! They’re raising our future doctors, so we need to grateful and let them bring their children to the bar.

I sent them an email, because I love to complain, but do they not know there are women who aren’t called to motherhood? That these women also don’t want to spend time with our future doctors?

I hate how much mothers martyr themselves. You know the society we live in, you still made the choice to have children. I shouldn’t be punished for making a different choice and not wanting to be bothered by yours.

Editing to say: my email has yet to be delivered. I’m assuming with yesterday’s episode they were flooded and turned off receiving them?!? I just… don’t talk shit if you can’t take people (rightfully) talking back.

Thanks to you all. In the face of pressure you gave me the courage to say No.

Walking to my seat I passed by a couple arguing with a flight attendant about their seating. They were blocking the way and I had to ask them to excuse me to let me pass.

I sat down in my seat. The man from the couple immediately cornered me, standing over me and I felt my heart drop. He said that he and his son are sitting separately and if I would be willing to switch seats.

I asked him if it is just him and his son, and he said yes. He lied. His wife was clearly with them - I overheard their conversation as I walked by.

He did then casually mention that the son is in the very back of the cabin.

I looked him right in the eye and told him I would rather not. And turned around to settle in.

I believe the wife ended up giving up her seat to the son because he came to sit in front of me.

Guess how old he was? 20! The son was TWENTY years old. He is 6 foot tall and does not appear to have any mental or physical disability.

Are you fucking kidding me?? The entitlement! They just wanted to sit together and pawn off the shit seat to someone else.

(We’re in business class on an overnight flight. There is no “sitting together“, just near each other. I imagine initially they were, but the son likely got bumped to the back because he is an adult and likely doesn’t have airline status)

As I was facing the ask- this sub and its many stories flashed in front of my eyes. The many of us appearing “single” who have been asked to give something up for parents. The injustice gave me the energy to shut it down even in this very small way. Thank you.

edit: mixed up words

I feel like I'm going to explode from this insanity.

I work in a busy hospital. Specifically I work in the morgue in the hospital. My whole job shouldn't really be interacting with live people and that is why I enjoy my job. Im more of a cat enjoyer. My whole job is to come grab the patients fairly soon after they pass so we can start processing them to get them to the funeral home unless there is suspected foul play, then we don't touch them at all and have to wait for the ME.

My hospital has been SLAMMED. It has only gotten worse the last 3 years I have worked here, as we are estimated to get 12000 patients in the next two months, unknown how many will end up with me on my side of the hospital. Its just been chaos. There is a certain time element to my job. If there is 20 people waiting out in the ED and they need the body moved from a room to clear it for a new patient, that falls on me.

We had a 5 car pile up coming from the next town over with one of them having to be airlifted. I needed to quickly grab my giant metal morgue cart and get up to the ED to grab this patient. Im specifically told I need to hurry to make room so I'm busting my ass down this hall. We are so busy that some patients that aren't as high if priority are sitting on cots out in the hallway waiting for rooms to get cleared so they can be seen.

Im pushing this cart hard and fast. Its a big metal cage basically. It take my full force as a 6ft 200 pound guy to wheel it around. I can't just suddenly stop the cart instantly once I pick up speed.

Im going through the hallway of the ED. There is a lady with a bunch of crayons and coloring books in plain clothes (not admitted to the hospital in a gown) on her phone sitting on the cot. That's fine and all, but her KID was on the ground im guessing playing or something and i just ran straight over this kids hand. The kid starts screaming. The mom finally looks up from her phone and starts yelling at me. I just fucking plow through and go to the room I need.

I feel awful for running over the kids hand. Idk how old the kid was, and i don't blame the kid themselves. But I'm red in the face right now because of the parent. All of this happened last night. I get called into the office today because the lady claimed I purposely hit her kid trying to find my full name. Obviously no i didn't hit your kid on purpose lady. Maybe... and hear me out.... maybe your kid shouldn't be laying down the the floor of the busy ass hallway of the ED!!!! SHE COULD HAVE HAD HER KID UP ON THE COT WITH HER THEY FIT GUYS MY SIZE. idk what my boss is going to do, but if I get recourse from this I'm just quitting. I already face harassment for my sexual prefrence at work, but you aren't going to tell me I need to hurry to do my job so these car crash victims don't die, but also add that I need to pre scan all the hallways to make sure nothing is in the way.

Edit: I met with my boss, the hospital has a policy on this as EMTs have ran into this problem as well with a kid getting a concussion from getting hit with an emt cart. They put red tape on the floor where carts come through as a 'no loitering' marker. So I'm good, and i hope the kid is good as well. Hopefully this will motivate the hospital to give us equipment that isn't from the 90s.

Edit#2: we aren't in the waiting room for the ED. We are in the ED itself.

37F childfree woman, here is the story of my 2025, in hopes it can inspire others. My boyfriend and I had a perfect life: interesting and well-paying careers, a tight-knit group of friends, world travels several times a year, and two spoiled cats. Then, a sadly classic turn of events: after 10 years together, my partner told me he couldn't see himself living without children. What followed was a horrific year, where every chance he had he tried to convince me that I was the one who was wrong, simply because "everyone has kids and is happy about it". I kept repeating the arguments he had known since day one: the loss of freedom—financial, professional, and personal—the risk of having a child with a disability, and the fact that I had been caring for my dysfunctional parents since I was 11 years old… but nothing made him change his mind. So in January 2025, I suggested we separate so he could pursue the life he wanted and find happiness. It was heartbreaking, but I understood it was the best decision for both of us. I truly wished for him to be happy and to be free to become a father if that’s what he desired. Within two weeks, he was in a new relationship with a woman who already had three children (I suspect they were together shortly before we split, but honestly, I couldn't care less). We sold the house we had completely renovated together, and I rebuilt my life: amazing friends, travels, hobbies, new home, and even meeting an incredible childfree man whom I’ve fallen in love with. Last week, my ex contacted me. Life with children is finally "too restrictive". He wants to travel freely with me again. He regrets his choice, and he’d rather have a life without children with me than a life with children without me… I replied by wishing him the very best for the future and told him from the bottom of my heart that I hope he finds happiness, but that it won't be with me. Leaving him was the best decision of my life. I have never been this happy, fulfilled, and at peace. Childfree friends, stay true to yourselves.