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Does having kids make you happy?

For many people, getting married and having kids are entirely normal (and often wanted) life events. And those people who do go on to have children will tell you how happy they are with their latest addition – if you haven’t already seen the pictures on Facebook. Fair enough.

But what about those couples who get married and choose NOT to have children? Are they any less content than their child-bearing counterparts? The truth is, a lot more people are starting to choose that option. It could be for financial reasons, relationship instability or fertility issues. Or it could be that they simply don’t want to have kids. Again, fair enough.

The question remains though: does having kids make you happy, and are people who have children happier than those who don’t? It seems there’s no straight forward answer, there are simply too many variables to consider.

According to a column by Tim Lott in The Guardian, he looked at latest research from the Open University, and – perhaps unsurprisingly – found mixed results. First up, the survey recorded that couples without children had better relationships than those with them. However, it also showed that mothers were much happier than women without children (even if they were in happy relationships), while men with children were more likely to be unhappy than men who were in relationships without children. Like we said, results were mixed! The survey does goes into more detail, so check out the link above to read more about it.

Another interesting article, by Tia Ghose on Discovery News, says that in terms of happiness levels, it’s a draw. “People with children in the home are as satisfied with their lives as those who don’t have kids at home.” However, it also goes on to say that “although people with children tend to value their lives more than people without kids, they’re different in a lot of ways: they’re richer, better educated and healthier.”

Again, there’s a lot more to it, and the variables to the question of “does having kids make you happy?” is extensive.

What are your thoughts? Join the conversation and share your thoughts on the Hello Doctor Facebook page.