It’s Whiny Wednesday, your opportunity to rant on a theme.
This week’s topic has been brought up by several readers:
Feeling that you’re expected to carry a disproportionate responsibility for the care of aging parents because you don’t have children to worry about.
Feel free to add your own whines, too.
Because I don’t have children to care for me in my old age, it is even more imperative that nothing negatively affect my retirement savings. I will not let elder care affect my work life or pay check. If that makes me a lousy daughter, then so be it. My mom can afford to pay for care when the time comes. I need to make sure that I can too.
I feel like I am expected to do a lot of things because I am childless (save the environment, create world peace, donate to every charity under the sun).
It is exhausting.
I didnt mind caring for my parents although sister with three kids & out of State could not even help with even a phone call…I had Dad, Mom and Aunt. Now that it is over with it saddens me that I have no one, not even a niece or nephew to help us. We are already getting to the point of needing help but we have none. When we mention we have no family people say “oh well your kids are not always near you” that is true but if something happened I am sure they would be there in a heartbeat plus they can make your decisions long distance. With us there is no one at all.
I’m glad I don’t have parents to look after, to be honest. I did it for my mum years ago (she died young) and my father has stepkids & stepwife to do it for him – I won’t even be offering. But I feel bad that people like me do get dumped on because they don’t have kids: i would be raging about that.
Thankfully my sis and I won’t be at that phase in life for a while. I don’t think she’d ever put that kind of pressure on me, but I have a feeling my mom will. (My biological dad will probably come around too eventually)
On DH’s side its a different story. I think all of that responsibility will be ours. I don’t plan to fork out any money though. Like another poster said, we shouldn’t have to risk our future just because we don’t have children to take care of.
There are plenty of other things that get put on my plate because I have all the time in the world, i.e. no kids.. Its so dang frustrating!