An Inside Look At Being An Only Child Of Aging Parents

With added bonuses of “distance” and “not completing the circle.”

Much hand-wringing of late about the fertility rate, and within that discussion there’s a lot of women on TikTok saying one child is the best model (I know some women IRL like this), which makes sense because one child is theoretically going to be more affordable than three children. However, there’s a counter argument that people “need” siblings because they’re built-in friends, with sometimes the argument extending to “Well, when you’re old, it’s better that the responsibility for your care be shifted among 2–3 people.” Guys like Elon have even said that part out loud. Ironically, he has 14 kids (that we know of) and I doubt many of them will “take care of him” in 30 years, although the assets will. Anyway.

I am an only child. I live in Fort Worth and my parents live in NYC. You have no need to care about any of this, but if you are in this situation or approaching this situation, maybe this can help a little bit, or at least offer some ways to think about it. I am not sure it will, but it felt like something semi-valuable to write.

Brief backstory

I am 44. My mom is 81 and my dad is 85. I am married (second time), but I don’t have kids. As noted above, my…