Dinky22 Helmi

Regretful Parents: “I Thought Life Was Worth Living… Now I’m Not So Sure” | Reddit Stories (Ft. The Girl With The List!)

What happens when parenting regret doesn’t go away… it just evolves?In this episode, Erika is joined by fellow childfree girlie Abby Porter (aka z00mie, aka “the girl with the list”) to unpack a brand-new post from a parent whose regret has shifted from newborn exhaustion to something much heavier: existential anxiety, fear about the future, and the pressure of shaping a child’s entire life.

We discuss:
• Why regret can become more philosophical as kids grow
• The crushing pressure parents feel to “not mess up” their children
• Anxiety about AI, social media, and the modern world kids are growing up in
• The myth that motherhood comes naturally
• Why some people realize the realities of parenting too late
• How comparison culture and mommy influencers make parenting harder
• Whether thinking deeply about parenthood BEFORE kids could prevent regret

TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Intro + Meet Abby Porter
01:00 How parenting regret changes over time
03:00 Fear of traumatizing your kids (even if you’re a good parent)
05:00 Generational patterns, anxiety, and breaking cycles
07:00 Parenting anxiety about the future, AI, and safety
09:00 “Philosophical garbage” — unpacking that take
12:00 When motherhood isn’t what you expected
14:00 The myth that parenting comes naturally
16:00 Social media, mommy influencers, and comparison
18:00 Kids, screens, and the “iPad generation”
21:00 Therapist advice: stop spiraling or think deeper?
23:00 Why these conversations matter BEFORE having kids
24:50 Comment reactions + final thoughts

FOLLOW ABBY PORTER
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@z00mie
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@z00mie
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/z00mi.e/

MORE FROM US
Website: https://www.dinkypod.com/
Patreon: https://patreon.com/dinkypod

regretful parents podcast, parenting regret discussion, motherhood reality, childfree podcast, parenting mental health, motherhood expectations, modern parenting struggles, should I have kids, honest parenting talk, parenting anxiety, raising kids today, social media parenting pressure, AI future kids

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/dinky--5953015/support.

Tämä jakso on lisätty Podme-palveluun avoimen RSS-syötteen kautta eikä se ole Podmen omaa tuotantoa. Siksi jakso saattaa sisältää mainontaa.

Jaksot(146)

Inside Our Childfree Group Trips: France + Vietnam Recap

Want more exclusive content from Dinky? Join the Patreon! Shop items from our Dink Yourself segment. Today we are recapping two recent Dinky trips: Vietnam in April and France in June. If you’re new ...

28 Heinä 1h 25min

The Childfree Author Writing The Rom-Coms No One Else Will: Meet Jaclyn Westlake

Want more exclusive content from Dinky? Join the Patreon! Shop items from our Dink Yourself segment. We’re talking with author Jaclyn Westlake! Jaclyn is a former recruiter and career advice columnist...

14 Heinä 1h 28min

Regretful Parents, Part 4 (Facebook Edition)

Today we are doing another dedicated Regretful Parents episode. This is our fourth full episode we’ve done on regretful parents and, if you didn’t notice by now, we also have a recurring series we try...

1 Heinä 1h 12min

How To Decide If You Want Kids (With Clarity Coach Keltie Maguire)

Want more exclusive content from Dinky? Join the Patreon! Shop items from our Dink Yourself segment. Today, we’re talking to the mind behind the Instagram account Kids or Childfree. Keltie Maguire is ...

16 Kesä 1h 33min

Gamer Cozy K On Why You Need More Hobbies

Want more exclusive content from Dinky? Join the Patreon! Shop items from our Dink Yourself segment. Our guest today is Kennedy, who goes by Cozy K or just @cozy.games on social media, has more than 1...

2 Kesä 1h 26min

Childfree Adventure YouTuber Eva Zu Beck Bought Horses To Quit Scrolling Instagram

Want more exclusive content from Dinky? Join the Patreon! Shop items from our Dink Yourself segment. Today we are joined by Eva Zu Beck: an adventure YouTuber, host and director of the show Superskill...

19 Touko 1h 24min

Can You Change Your Mind About Having Kids? Helena de Groot On Waffling, Divorce, And Moving On

Want more exclusive content from Dinky? Join the Patreon! Shop items from our Dink Yourself segment. Today, we’re talking with Helena de Groot — creator, sound designer, storyteller, and the audio pro...

5 Touko 1h 40min

[FREE BONUS] Forced C-Sections, Fetal Personhood Laws, & The Women Fighting Back

UPDATE: Hi folks, we're releasing this Patreon exclusive to all our listeners because the main story in this episode is now going to court + we want to share the story more widely. If you want to supp...

28 Huhti 1h 13min