The Are Kids For Me Podcast

In this episode, I speak to Patrick Freyne; journalist, author and musician. He recently published his highly acclaimed debut book of personal essays called 'Ok Lets Do Your Stupid Idea'. This includes an essay discussing  not having children which wasn't by choice for Patrick and his wife. We discuss the impact of this and how he feels about it now. We speak about the power of soci...

In this episode, I speak to Cork couple, Kym and Rick Kenny. We talk about how, initially, they had different opinions on whether to have children or not. Kym knew from a young age that she didn't want to, while Rick assumed he would have kids in the future. He describes how he came to see this as an automatic assumption and how he didn't know if it was actually something he wanted or no...

I am delighted to speak to Marcia Drut-Davis in this episode. Marcia is a life long campaigner and advocate for the childfree lifestyle, as well as being an author, teacher and sought after public speaker. She is now in her 70's and can give the perspective of an older childfree person that we don't always get to hear.  We talk about the many ways her life has been influenced by her deci...

In this episode, I speak to Saoirse McHugh and Colm Cafferky about what it is like trying to decide whether to have children or not, and being very uncertain about that. We look at the many factors they are considering including the environmental impact of having a child, the type of world a child would be born into, the need for financial security, concerns about the physical and emotional impact...

In this episode, I speak to Emilie Pine,  author of the multi award winning book 'Notes to Self'.  We discuss her movement through, and experience of, many positions regarding parenthood - not being sure if she wanted to be a parent, very strongly wanting to be a parent, having a miscarriage and needing to accept that she wasn't going to be a parent.  We discuss the guilt that can c...

In this episode, I talk to Jenny and Ann Blake about their experience of making a decision of whether to become parents or not, both as individuals and as a couple. They very generously share this personal process and important insights. These include the need to be very honest and open with yourself and your partner, to be aware of your relationship dynamics and individual needs within that, as w...

In this episode, I speak to Catherine O'Connor who is happily childfree by choice from a young age. We discuss how this hasn't changed for her, what her childfree life looks like, her positive approach to getting older and about adapting friendships when kids come along.  Please subscribe/follow the podcast and check out the 'Are Kids For Me' pages on Facebook, https://www.face...

In this episode, I speak to three amazing women about their experiences of endometriosis and its impact on their fertility decisions. Amy now has a 16 month old son after 2 years of difficulties. Irene has previously tried to get pregnant and is currently enjoying her childfree life with her husband and two dogs. Sarah is currently going through IVF treatment but with a keen awareness of the physi...

In this episode, I speak to Catherine Costigan, the 'Alpha Female' professional MMA fighter from Limerick. Catherine speaks with great passion about her sport both as a fighter and a coach. We talk about the competing demands of being a professional athlete and a parent. Catherine does not currently plan on having children and is very dedicated to the many children and adults she works w...

In this episode, I speak to Ciara Meehan. She is an historian, lecturer, and author who is childfree by choice. She speaks about being very sure of that and what it's like feeling excluded from society where the focus is on motherhood and families with children. She shares some great insight on how to support yourself in this. You can follow Ciara on Twitter - https://twitter.com/CA_Meehan  ...

In this episode, I speak with Joanne Ryan. Joanne is an actor and playwright, who wrote and performed a play called 'Eggistentialism', which was all about her process of trying to decide if she wanted to have a child or not. We discuss the experience of feeling overloaded with conflicting information and how she needed to stop searching for the 100% correct answer to this question. Joann...

In this episode, I have a great conversation with Bronagh Fleming about her choice to be childfree. Bronagh is really interesting person, with a wide range of passions and interests. You can follow her at https://www.instagram.com/foxhollowstyle/ to see her wonderful interior styling ideas. Bronagh is approaching glorious middle age with the hope that people will stop asking her when she and her p...

Welcome to the Are Kids For Me podcast. This is a brief introduction to explain what the podcast is about and what you can expect from future episodes. I am really looking forward to this series and would love to hear listener's feedback. Please subscribe/follow the podcast and check out the 'Are Kids For Me' pages on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/arekidsforme and Instagram, ht...