I know I am AIBU, but whenever child-free ppl complain about being tired I get annoyed, barring medical/health issues

[worldenoughandtime]

This is just a secret confession here, in the anonymity of the internet, and I hope I have enough social skills to disguise my true feelings. Which is of extreme annoyance when child-free people complain about being tired (given there are no aggravating health concerns). (In my social circle at least, people complain about being tired and busy all the time).

The tiredness that comes with managing kids - especially more than one, and especially for lone/single parents of which there seems to be more and more- is just on a different level. Needed to get that off my chest.

@Squirrelblanket 💯 good one 👍

I have two teen boys who are obviously far more self sufficient now so are not as much work but let me tell you something, I have never in my life been more exhausted - physically, mentally, emotionally. Thanks to peri-menopause, incurable insomnia, chronic back pain, an extremely demanding job, a farce of a relationship with my husband and poor mental health I feel absolutely fucked. I had way more energy when the kids were younger, and somehow worked full time then too - now I only work 4 days.

Admittedly my most energetic days were in my twenties before I had children and was unmarried. <wistful sigh>

I mean look at it the other way, it's entirely possible that people who can't hack the rigours of looking after a family are moral and spiritual weaklings who shouldnt have been allowed to dilute the gene pool with their inferior and badly behaved offspring in the first place

Nope. The OP will probably suggest that you adopt, as well.

🤣🤣🤣 are you serious. People are not allowed to be tired if they don’t have kids. Yes the world revolves around you. You are so hard done by. 🤣

I don't entirely disagree. I've done 24 hour hospital shifts, gone through periods of insomnia, depression, stress and illness and for me personally having young kids I am more tired than in those situations. I think its more that it's non stop for years, no breaks, almost 24/7, no real rest if your ill, just constant responsibility and extra household work.

I worked 12 hour days, 6 days a week for a long time before kids.

I can honestly say I was more tired then than I am now with 4 children and working part time.

Everyone's circumstances are entirely different.

An acquaintance of mine tried this argument on me when he became a parent. He was quite aggressive about it and I thought he was a bit of a cunt tbh.
He basically told me he wouldn't accept any non parent saying they were tired again.

YANBU but people won’t like it when you say it

Yessss!!!!

What ? Having young kids makes you more tired that bouts of insomnia or 24 hours shifts. Give over.

Given that the OP seems to find having children to be terribly taxing physical and emotional labour, I am not surprised she is tired. People like the OP who are obviously very unfit and not very bright will find managing day to day life quite exhausting. I have a lot of sympathy that even the most basic of tasks seems to have exhausted her so.

I have children. I also work from home, on a good salary, have fully flexible hours, live within walking distance of school and have all our childcare needs covered by great wraparound provision. Any time I'm tired it's because DH and I have stayed up too late chatting and drinking wine. I'm way less tired than I was working all hours to establish a career in a competative and high stress industry when i was childfree.

life’s hard and everyone will is allowed to be tired and burnout from time to time.

I wouldn’t underestimate peoples careers and how hard they can be. At one point in time I worked my job 8-8 and came home, has a quick dinner and had to work at my desk until 1am. And weekends, for months.

When I went freelance I had to stay awake for days at a time to meet a deadline, only sleeping half an hour every few hours.

So yeah, I was tired 😂

You are hilarious. 🤣🤣🤣 because this is joke, right!

I think the idea of not getting a single night of unbroken sleep for several years is the thing that's hard for those with young children. You literally never get a break.

What on earth makes you think that all parents have several years without a single night of unbroken sleep?

What utter bollocks. Maybe you’re just doing parenting wrong if you find it so terribly exhausting.

@dollymixtured

Do you have kids?

No wonder your tired OP, this sounds EXHAUSTING. To have to consider so many variables before making small talk… I’d suggest you choosing to stay mute May be far easier than asking a catalogue of questions before hand. What one does for a living, whether they have health conditions, disabled children, more than one child, a helpful partner, family around to help etc… only then deciding if one might be permitted to express their need for sleep!

Maybe you should go to bed earlier!

But not everything IS equal, OP.
I know you just want a vent and probably know you're throwing the cat among the pigeons but I can't help but rise to it. Childfree people, whether by choice or otherwise, are as entitled to fatigue as anyone else. Tiredness is not a zero-sum game, there's plenty of it to go around, and I say that from my first trimester with my second child.
My friend has a couple of cats who wake him up in the wee hours and he struggles to get back to sleep. I wouldn't dream of telling him he's not entitled to be tired because it's not a child waking him up.

Fucking stupid thread.

Anyhow, I'm childless, and I'm about to go get into my lovely big comfy bed with a bottle of wine and a good book.

Enjoy the being woken up in the night by the children that you chose to have. 👍

I have a child and a health condition and I am not at all tired! Wish I was tireder actually - I can't sleep!

What are your kids doing to make you so tired OP? Sort it out!

Yabvu. Currently my 8 month old is asleep in bed and she sleeps through. My 11 year old DSD is reading and I'm on the couch with a glass of wine. My childless friend who is a nurse is working a 12 hour A&E shift. Who do you think is more tired?

I just had a 30 min nap. So nice. Childfree me is re-energised.

I was a single parent. I'm still tired , I work very long hours. Is that ok ?