Feeling terrified for all our children in the future

[Horseskeepmesane]

I am really panicking about how terrible lots of things in the world are at the minute. And we are raising our children in this state, what will the world look like soon?

how will we cope with…

childrens mental health
lack of teaching staff
social media
tbe constant warning of what damage processed foods can do
pressure of earning on both parents
the climate crisis

how do you all see the future panning out?

I'm worried about the effects of social media, but at least we're not going through a world war (and hopefully not in the future too!), we have more food and education options than ever. More tolerance on difference too.

It's not all doom and gloom. Are you putting too much pressure on yourself? It sounds like you're bogged down with a lot of serious stuff.

I am worried about a lot on behalf of my GC.

I'm hoping my kids don't have children.

Why worry? We are living on a temperate island. We are very well off compared to most of the world.

At least you haven't got bombs raining over your head, rationing, etc.

Honestly this country has been through worse and there are many countries now that don't have access to education, healthcare and clean water.

Prospective is needed, children have many benefits incomparison to other countries or previous generations maybe focus on the positives.

I agree. I honestly don't think the world as we know it will be here in 50 years. Humans have destroyed it.

I get you all that we are lucky in comparison, it’s just the fear of such instability in the future, mainly the pressures on our kids. I think I need to just focus on the positives and try not to think too much

And what good do you think being terrified is gonna do?

Passing on your anxiety will do them more harm than anything on your list.

^ this

And no, we don’t have lots of food. There’ll be a fight for resources at some point.

There is nothing any of us individuals can do, take each day as it comes.

Do not watch news reports, majority of things on the news is doom and gloom.

With the exception of climate change and social media, none of these are new things. In our grandparents' day, they were worrying about food shortages, being bombed, being sent off to war as teenagers, lack of effective birth control or good maternal and infant health, women were often not allowed to work or have financial independence, child labour, poor educational opportunities for all but the wealthy (and the flip side of that is that wealthy children got shipped off to boarding school at 7 with very little love and guidance from their parents at all - talk about poor mental health outcomes).

I mean, I think things are pretty good, to be fair, in comparison to how they have been in generations past. In the 80s, my parents were panicked about global financial crisis, nuclear war, the cold war, a global pandemic (HIV/AIDS) that no one understood, sexual promiscuity, drugs in schools, poverty, etc.

I think my life is safer and more equal than any of my ancestors. I feel enormously lucky. I think there's a good chance my dc will live in a society that is more equal and compassionate than the one I live in.

I appreciate that there are many people in the world who don't have that privilege.

In terms of the environment crisis, I am hopeful that technological advancement will save us.

Time to stop watching the news OP. “If it bleeds it leads” journalism and the media fear mongering is a real thing- all stories magnify the negative and ignore the positives. We have survived much much worse in the past

If some of the scientists researching climate change are to be be believed we haven't survived much worse.

I think we’re parents to the first generation of kids who have their mental health needs fully recognised. My child will never suffer emotionally like I did. My sister and I lost our dad in the mid-90s; we were 11 and 16 respectively. We were not offered any bereavement counselling. That would never happen today.

Worrying just means you suffer twice.

There is nothing we can do that than enjoy each day as it comes.

Some sensible posts on here. 150 years ago children of 8 were working full time climbing up hot chimneys. I bought a book called ", The Climate change myth", written by a professor, think his name was Booker. We produce a very small amount of the planets Co2 in this country. India and China are still building x amount of coal fired power stations a week. The Greens stopped nuclear power. Every generation has had its challenges,yes, social media has a lot to answer for. People are not as resilient now,"trigger warnings" before watching Shakespeare,re-writing Fairy Tales, Prince Charming was a stalker, sexual predator FFS. It's a Fairy story. Max Pemberton , says people need to fail to learn to cope with failure.

I think children's mental health has massively been over reported In the media, there was an investigation on Radio 4 that debunked the statistics that were reported about the percentage of children prescribed anti depressants.

I think its socially acceptable these days not to go to uni and change jobs and choose your own path in life which is a massive benefit to young people.

@Kwasi Same experience for me in the 1990s. I was just expected to get on with it. I think it shaped the entire course of my life.

My biggest worry is the housing situation in the UK... especially London. It's getting to the stage where a single person with a normal job can't even afford to rent a small one bedroom flat.

@RedHelenB those people not living in temperate climates won’t stay there. They’ll move north to the temperate climates. It’s a very interesting challenge for all of us.

Phew......that's alright then nothing to worry about.!

Have to be honest, I agree. It’s one of the reasons I am at peace with not having children.

There is no benefit in imagining worst case scenarios though. You will only become distressed. Best case scenario is that technology comes through for us. Scientists, CEOs, even politicians have children too. It feels hopeless sometimes but there is work out there being done to swerve the worst outcomes. It’s something we can hope for, anyway.

In 1800 329 out of every 1000 children did before the age of five. That is around 33%.

In 2000 that figure was 4 out of 1000 - which is 0.4%

Our children have access to free education, free healthcare, live in a democracy and a temperate climate.

Things are not perfect and there are significant concerns about climate change, state of public services.

But overall our kids have never had it so good.

I've not had enough coffee to stop me from producing a stupid post, loving this edit button!