5 Celebrities Speak on Choosing Not to Have Children

Not everyone feels the desire to have children and it’s perfectly normal to decide against it, even if there is pressure  – on women especially – to have a family. These 5 celebrities have spoken candidly on choosing not to have children, explaining that motherhood simply isn’t something they want in their lives. Some like their lives without the responsibility of having a child to look after, while others never felt particularly maternal or as though they needed a child. Here is what they’ve said on the topic.

Cameron Diaz

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Cameron feels that she doesn’t need to have children: “I have an unbelievable life. In some ways, I have the life that I have because I don’t have children. Children aren’t the only things that bring you gratification and happiness. And honestly? We don’t need any more kids. We have plenty of people on this planet.”

Dita Von Teese
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Dita believes she is just as much of a woman without kids: “I don’t feel that we need to have children to validate our marriage and I don’t need children to claim I’m a fulfilled woman.”

Kim Cattrall
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Kim realized that she didn’t want children and was only feeling pressure from others: “I realized that so much of the pressure I was feeling was from outside sources, and I knew I wasn’t ready to take that step into motherhood. Being a biological mother just isn’t part of my experience this time around.”

Lara Flynn Boyle
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Lara decided that motherhood isn’t for her: “I love children and I love men, but I can’t commit to either for the rest of my life. I am a very selfish person. I had such a great mom and I know that I’d never be that mom. I wouldn’t want to bring a child into this world unless I could be. I think the institution of marriage is a great idea, but for me it’s just an idea. And I don’t believe that women can successfully have it all. I really don’t.”

Oprah
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Oprah thinks she couldn’t have her amazing life if she’d had children because she would be too busy: “I could not have had the life or the career in the way that I had it if I’d chosen to have children. As we grow together, as we get older together, he becomes a more affirming and more loving part of my life than he’s ever been.”