My daughter is 18m old, she is happy and healthy. We live in London and my husband and I both full time and we both have high-flying careers. I love my job, I hated maternity leave. I think my daughter would love a sibling but I don't want to risk having a child that will make her life more difficult or monopolise our attention now or later in life.
I have a very complicated relationship with my sister, she has an undiagnosed genetic condition and learning difficulties and has always required my parents' support. She is also mean and manipulative and I hate that she tortures my mum and I can't say a thing about it (my mum always takes her side).
If I knew we would be a happy family of four I would go for it, but the risk seems too big now. My daughter is happy and healthy and developing normally (given my family history I always worried about this). Sometimes I think that If I knew I couldn't have more kids, I would feel relieved and try to give my daughter the happiest childhood and life possible with what we have. Does anyone else relate at all to what I'm saying or is this totally out of line? I'm posting in this group because I think only someone who has lived in a family with a special needs child or sibling could understand how complicated these feelings are and how stressed I am.
How did you know having a second child or one and done was the right decision for your family?