AIBU to wonder how so many non parents end up on Mumsnet?

[Keepingitreal14]

I see loads of posts from people without kids, older people with grown up adult kids etc and always wonder how they ended up as a poster on a mumsnet forum? Just feels a bit random to me.

@RosaBudDrood

older people with grown up adult kids

And are they no longer parents or something?

Exactly what I was wondering too!!

@TheYearOfSmallThings

It is because if you Google almost ANYTHING ("recipe for dhal", "is Hackney a good place to live", "chased by evil spirit in forest") one of the responses will be a Mumsnet post.

Nobody goes looking for Mumsnet, people engage with it accidentally, find lots to interest them, and stay.

“You don’t find Mumsnet; It finds you 👻 “ would be a great slogan. 😂

God knows I’ve been parenting so long that I do it without looking and 2/3 of mine are adults anyway, but you cannot leave MN. Completely impossible. I’ve tried. There’s a second slogan in there. ☺️

I came on for the infertility forum, then found AIBU!

@RickiTarr you can log out any time you like, but you can never leave!

Exactly!

Because it covers a variety of topics, not just ones which pertain to parenting.

So many ways to cook chicken.

Just feels a bit random to me.
Don't be ridiculous!

Where I'm from the best site for getting help with random questions was called HorseNet, I don't think they expected you to rock up with a horse or even prove you had one 😂.

Are you new to the internet?
This is a forum with lots of different subforums which are not necessarily to do with parenting? When you google x, y or z, you can very well get a mumsnet link pop up.

Out of 28 MN topics, only 5 are parenting specific (plus or minus, just took a quick look).Might explain why people who don't have children find it useful.
How people 'who aren't even trying to
conceive' (did you really say that ?!) find MN - friends talk about it; it's mentioned in the media; frequently comes up when googling answers to questions.

As for we oldies: you don't stop being a parent when your children get to 18, i didn't feel the need to leave just because my children grew up. I don't actively view parenting topics but sometimes threads come up in active conversations that I had some experience in, so useful to share.

As above, lots of useful topics that aren't parenting related.

Hope that helps

Gosh @Keepingitreal14 I always think the same. The mind boggles!!!! I mean really what possible interest could non- parents have in:

• relationships
• sex
• divorce/separation
• calorie counting
• low carb diets
• weight watchers
• slimming world
• boot camp
• bloggers
• tattooes
• yoga
• style & beauty
• philosophy
• books
• higher education
• the staff room
• food
• veganism
• feminism
• films
• tv
• podcasts
• music
• gaming
• arts and crafts
• sport
• weddings
• radio
• health anxiety
• depression
• alcohol support
• exercise
• coronavirus
• diabetes support
• allergies and intolerances
• addiction support
• menopause
• home decoration
• gardening
• DIY
• rural living
• living overseas
• money
• investments
• carers
• legal matters
• London
• the royal family
• elderly parents
• politics
• dogs
• cats
• horses
• pets

I mean I just don’t understand why they’re here at all. It’s just so confusing.

Found it by accident looking for something long forgotten and have ended up staying to ask advice on several life issues I don't like to talk about IRL, and really value the replies (I use a couple of names as I discuss quite sensitive stuff).

It's a demographic- mostly female, mature- I feel comfortable sharing details with, as I know that on other sites, I would be more likely to get smartarse or less understanding responses.

Didn't know it was time for this thread again.

alwayswithhope Isn't it just? 😂😂

Surely, posters with adult DC will have a lot of useful experience to being to the forum. And last time I looked, there was a young adult offspring topic.

Anyway, it's a public forum, open to anyone who wants to browse and post

Mumsnet comes up in search results all the time when you are looking for household tips, opinions on household items etc. I came for these, the Xmas bargains threads and reading people’s experiences of ttc with PCOS and stayed because chatting online is a way to feel less isolated during the pandemic.

I joined for the DIY tips, but now have 2 DC so no time for DIY anymore

Most of the topics covered aren’t about kids though so why would they not?

This question is asked every month or so, it certainly has over the last few months. Can people really not see how the general population would find the forum here given the wide variety of topics that are discussed????? I found mumsnet because every time I asked google a question more often than not there was a discussion about it on here and I would feel like my question was answered or I at least had a good idea of where it was going. So I ended up joining.

Came for the DIY tips when we were renovating. Stayed to read the insane stories that get posted here.

Talk about gatekeeping.

@alwayswithhope

Gosh *@Keepingitreal14* I always think the same. The mind boggles!!!! I mean really what possible interest could non- parents have in:

• relationships
• sex
• divorce/separation
• calorie counting
• low carb diets
• weight watchers
• slimming world
• boot camp
• bloggers
• tattooes
• yoga
• style & beauty
• philosophy
• books
• higher education
• the staff room
• food
• veganism
• feminism
• films
• tv
• podcasts
• music
• gaming
• arts and crafts
• sport
• weddings
• radio
• health anxiety
• depression
• alcohol support
• exercise
• coronavirus
• diabetes support
• allergies and intolerances
• addiction support
• menopause
• home decoration
• gardening
• DIY
• rural living
• living overseas
• money
• investments
• carers
• legal matters
• London
• the royal family
• elderly parents
• politics
• dogs
• cats
• horses
• pets

I mean I just don’t understand why they’re here at all. It’s just so confusing.

Quite a few come in to talk about women’s health: endometriosis, perimenopause and menopause, for instance.

Which is great. The more of us talking about these things the more we can push for better treatment.

Gosh. We haven't had one of these threads for at least three days.