A former nanny says the job put her off having children forever.
Marcela, who has chosen not to share her surname, loved kids so much that she worked in childcare for two years, looking after little ones Monday to Friday, 9-5.
At first, the 28-year-old found them cute, fun and easy to handle – but over time she was “put off” by the amount of work that went in to looking after them.
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Instead, Marcela prefers to focus on her dog, Jace, who she says is more than enough for her.
“I found myself looking after a baby when I was 22 and continued to look after until I was 25 when they turned three,” Marcela, from Missouri, US, told What’s The Jam.
“I thought to myself, ‘this is the perfect test to see what motherhood is all about’.
“Boy was I right!“I loved nannying, it brought me so much joy and fulfilment and I felt I did a really amazing job at it.
“But it also single-handedly confirmed to me that motherhood was not for me.
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“There were days when 5pm rolled around and I was more than ready to hand off that baby and crawl into bed due to the exhaustion of keeping up with them the entire day.
“The constant care and vigilance that was needed was too much some days, and my patience was paper-thin by the end of the day.
“My eyes were opened and I realised, holy cow, I don’t want to do this whole mum thing, ever.”
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Marcela comes from a Hispanic Christian home, so was apprehensive about how it would go down when she told her family about her life choice.
Luckily, it went better than she had hoped.
She said: “My parents were definitely wary and confused at first due to societal expectations and boomer mentality.
“But soon they accepted my choice and love me just the same!”
Marcela was previously married but is now in a new relationship with partner Michael, who she shares dog Jace with.
She said: “My boyfriend and I talked about the fact I was never going to have kids and how that dynamic was going to affect our relationship very early on.
“He was on the same page and is also adamant about not having kids, so it’s a perfect match.
“We get to enjoy slow mornings, worry about our wants and needs and spend time doing what makes us feel happy and fulfilled – with lots and lots of sleep and napping sprinkled throughout.”
Marcela even throws birthday celebrations for her pooch and says she would “do anything” for him.
Despite facing trolls online, some of whom insist she must be “miserable” to share posts about her decision to not have children,Marcela is resolute in her decision and has no regrets.
She said: “The fact I could write a novel about my child-free journey says a lot about the time and conscious thought I’ve put into this decision.
“Unlike most child-free folks, I never had a singular moment or event that sparked this journey.
“I just know the desire to be a mother to a human child has never been there for me, I never played with dolls, having grown up with three older brothers.
“I didn’t fantasise about one day being a mum – I actually dreaded it because of how far removed I was from imagining that to be my life one day.
“I couldn’t be more grateful for those few years working as a nanny because without it I may have made the single most regretful mistake of my life by ignorantly having a kid to please all the external voices telling me that’s what I should do.
“My biggest advice to those who find themselves in limbo not knowing what path to take is to live your best life.
“Not your mum’s, not your best friend’s or your sister’s – yours.”
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