> The vast majority of people who I know with kids started in their early 30s.
Your experience isn't typical, at least for women
> The average age of first-time mothers in America is now up from 21 to 26, while for fathers, it’s increased from 27 to 31. This isn’t just within America; women in other developed countries are waiting too with the average first birth happening for new mothers at age 31. [1]
Also curious, where are you getting your info that 33 is a "prime" age for having children?
> A woman’s peak reproductive years are between the late teens and late 20s. By age 30, fertility (the ability to get pregnant) starts to decline. This decline becomes more rapid once you reach your mid-30s. By 45, fertility has declined so much that getting pregnant naturally is unlikely for most women.
> Down syndrome (trisomy 21) is the most common chromosome problem that occurs with later childbearing. The risk of having a pregnancy affected by Down syndrome is
> 1 in 1,480 at age 20
> 1 in 940 at age 30
> 1 in 353 at age 35
> 1 in 85 at age 40
> 1 in 35 at age 45 [2]
If people want to have children late in life then they should go for it, but it's a disservice to readers to pretend that 30-35 is the same as teens-twenties. Not everybody has access to education on reproductive health and discussions like these are an important way for some people to learn.
Holy moly at those stats. I’m not sure whether to thank you or to slap you, ha.
Better to go into it with both eyes open though.
Another option someone floated was to use Adopt International. It was somehow the only non-horror story I’ve ever heard about adoption. Everything else is “I’d do it again, but it wouldn’t be pleasant” type stories. So maybe we’ll import a baby from some shady back alley in China or something, who knows.
It’s so unfair that when you finally get your life in order, it’s already bordering on too late. Gah. Ce’st la vie, or however it’s spelled.
Not sure why you would slap me for species characteristics that are out of anyone's control, or life circumstances I played no part in. I know(/hope) you're probably just being light-hearted, but as I said in my comment, I don't support the common approach of pretending late pregnancies are without risk or talking about biological truths around pregnancy constraints helps anyone. No harm done, but again, not everyone has equal access to education around reproductive health and I would rather openly share inconvenient truths in the hopes that somebody out there can learn something about reproductive health.
As to the rest of your question, if you found my stats helpful, then you're welcome. I hope you didn't take it as an attack as, frankly, my comment wasn't even directed at you (another reason I found your response off-putting). It is unfair, but one thing I've tried to do is just keep looking forward and making the most of my time rather than looking back. As a software engineer who grew up poor and can now afford to pursue hobbies like extreme sports, it's too late for me spend my summer breaks in grade school snowboarding or mountain biking. But I focus on the fact that at least I can do it now, whereas many people may never be able to have the luxury. We can't change the past, but we can change the outlook we have on life.
Thanks for telling people about this. I think it's a bit common that women work and work and work and suddenly they're 35 or 40 and it's almost too late to have kids. (And I think that is sad)
Maybe it'd be better if people spent 5 more years working, until they were say 70, instead of retiring at 65.
And could instead take some years off in their late 20's and have kids. (Men too, although for them it's not biologically important in the same way)
Your experience isn't typical, at least for women
> The average age of first-time mothers in America is now up from 21 to 26, while for fathers, it’s increased from 27 to 31. This isn’t just within America; women in other developed countries are waiting too with the average first birth happening for new mothers at age 31. [1]
Also curious, where are you getting your info that 33 is a "prime" age for having children?
> A woman’s peak reproductive years are between the late teens and late 20s. By age 30, fertility (the ability to get pregnant) starts to decline. This decline becomes more rapid once you reach your mid-30s. By 45, fertility has declined so much that getting pregnant naturally is unlikely for most women.
> Down syndrome (trisomy 21) is the most common chromosome problem that occurs with later childbearing. The risk of having a pregnancy affected by Down syndrome is
> 1 in 1,480 at age 20
> 1 in 940 at age 30
> 1 in 353 at age 35
> 1 in 85 at age 40
> 1 in 35 at age 45 [2]
If people want to have children late in life then they should go for it, but it's a disservice to readers to pretend that 30-35 is the same as teens-twenties. Not everybody has access to education on reproductive health and discussions like these are an important way for some people to learn.
~~~~
1: https://www.forbes.com/sites/ashleystahl/2020/05/01/new-stud...
2: https://www.acog.org/womens-health/faqs/having-a-baby-after-...