[exitb]

No. And that’s a bit of an issue - I’ve encountered people that plan to become parents and their understanding of the process is all wrong. Not saying that they’ll end up being bad parents - most people rise to the occasion, but it feels like society tricks people into having kids.

[wat10000]

Absolutely. It’s pushed from all angles: you may not think you want kids, but it’ll be amazing. Once you do it you’ll have no regrets. You’ll never experience joy like the joy that they bring.

And that’s actually true for a lot of people. But not everyone. And there’s zero support for trying to figure it out and come to an informed decision before you dive in, and even less for concluding that actually you don’t think it’ll be that great for you and you’re not going to do it.

[BehindBlueEyes]

Being "the village" for someone else's kid(s) can give a decent idea of what to expect. And by that I mean actually moving in and helping 24/7 for a months at a time, not just babysitting one evening here and there. Did that one full year for a sibling. I'm told your outlook is different when it is your own kid, and I did ok but it definitely taught me that signing up for the full 18 years isn't for me.