Comments on SimplyForties: Having Children in Your late 30s and 40s? 4 Things...

I think the fertility issue is very real for those...

2011-08-31T12:51:07.566-04:00

I think the fertility issue is very real for those who experience it. I'm sure in terms of actual percentages (of who experiences infertility) it's small. I was 35 when I started trying and it took 4years and medical intervention. Other than 1 friend, none of my other 35+ year old friends had issues. So yes it's probably a small percentage but my friend and I both wished we had tried much sooner. The risks of Downs and other illnesses is also not to be taken lightly.

Older siblings should have no say in this. Often, ...

2011-08-30T19:27:02.451-04:00

Older siblings should have no say in this. Often, children change their minds and are not so grossed out about parents becoming parents again. That's one of the problems with young people today, they think they should have equal say as parents and want to rule the roost about all sorts of things like food eaten, tv time, etc. Parents should be adults and not give so much authority to children who will be spoiled in early adulthood, thinking they should have a say about too many issues.

I am a month away from my 43rd birthday and have a...

2011-08-14T21:06:48.126-04:00

I am a month away from my 43rd birthday and have an 8 year old son and a 1 year old daughter. While I understand the dangers of being pregnant and "older," I think that they are blown way out of proportion. For example, the risk of Downs Syndrome doubles (or is it triples?) for someone my age. But the risk for a younger person is like .05%. So double that and it is 1%. I have no problem with those odds. I refused the test for Downs, but the level 2 ultrasound I had put my risk at less than .05%.

As for not having enough energy to keep up with a youngster or two, that depends on the individual. I have more energy than I did than in my 20's, maybe because I take better care of myself. I play sports with my son, bike ride, etc. My husband also is in good shape.

People usually mistake my husband and I for much younger (10 years usually)than we are. And being around other (younger) parents in school situations makes us feel young. And we are by no means the oldest parents of a 3rd grader at school.

I say don't get hung up on age. It's only a number, and anyway youthfulness is a state of mind. I consider myself at 43 still young. Most women -- of all ages -- get pregnant and have perfectly healthy kids. In fact, I'd have one more but I can't afford it, lol.

As the children of mature parents, my brother and ...

2011-07-27T12:47:32.410-04:00

As the children of mature parents, my brother and I have always thought it was a foregone conclusion that we'd lose our parents while we were relatively young. Well, guess what? We're middle aged now and our folks are still going strong in their early 80s--while some of our friends' parents who are a full decade younger are suffering serious health problems.

We're basically very lucky, but I do question the wisdom of foregoing a family because of the potential of problems 25 or 30 years down the line. So often, the things we worry about never actually happen.

I think having children in late 30s and 40s will r...

2011-07-07T04:56:27.235-04:00

I think having children in late 30s and 40s will risk ourselves and our baby because we may carry certain diseases that we may not realize that could possibly affect our body. What do you think?

There's a lot of great information here. As an...

2011-06-23T12:43:23.261-04:00

There's a lot of great information here. As an older mom, I think we spend time discussing issues of fertility and caring for babies / toddlers, and forget that we'll be in our 50s and potentially 60s with teenagers.

That's a whole other thing - in terms of parental health, energy, and financial resources - not to mention what that means for the children involved.

It may be great that we can extend our period of fertility - through natural means and intervention - but we really need to give serious thought to what it means as a parent over the long haul. And, much as I hate to mention it, we never know if we'll find ourselves parenting older - solo.

Much food for thought here. Excellent post.