In this episode of the “Unclassified Woman” podcast, host Michelle interviews Fiona Ferris. After a brief introduction, Fiona shares her journey to becoming childless. In her twenties, Fiona got married to a man she later divorced. Subsequently, she met her current partner, and after some time, they began trying to conceive. Despite several years of trying, Fiona did not become pregnant. At that point, they made the decision to conclude their fertility journey and actively embrace being childless by choice.
Childless by choice #
While not having children was initially an undesired outcome, Fiona and her partner eventually made the decision to remain childless. When pregnancy didn’t occur, they briefly discussed adoption but quickly concluded it wasn’t the path they wanted to pursue. Instead, they viewed being childless as a second chance to shape the life they desired, free from the responsibilities of parenthood. This allows them to concentrate on other aspects of life, believing that, perhaps, in a future life, they might choose to experience parenthood.
Dreams come true #
In this life, Fiona has worked to make some of her biggest dreams come true. She started writing, initially with a blog and then progressed to writing books. Together with her partner, she lives their dream life on a small farm, working part-time as a writer. Fiona has self-published her first book, which is about creating the life you desire. Fiona’s primary advice is to stop listening to societal expectations, as well as the opinions of family and friends, and instead, start listening to yourself.
Insensitive comments #
Michelle and Fiona continue to talk about some myths and misconceptions about having children and big families. They also discuss comments that people make to women about having children. They might say, “One day you will have children,” while Fiona is childless by choice. Or they might say to a woman who is unable to get pregnant with a second child that she should have a second child so that the first child is not lonely. A reminder again to be aware of the things we say as, despite our best intentions, these topics can be very sensitive.
You can listen to this episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app. Please find Fiona’s blog at www.howtobechic.com/ or order her books at Amazon.
