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Comment by stonewashed | Hacker News Reader

> I have a hard time to see any relevance in a life without children anymore

So do I. Unfortunately I don't have any and most likely never will (the wife can't). Combined with an unfulfilling job, this makes most days quite pointless and hard to bear.

Personally I try to distract myself, not think too much about these things and just wait for it all to be over.

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I know this is a weird suggestion, and doesn't cover the missing fulfillment of raising kids. If having progeny is a concern of yours perhaps sperm donation might be something to think about. You can donate with the stipulation that any resultant children will be allowed to look you up if they wish later in life.

Not sure if this will help, but "giving back" or supporting those around you are some of the core ideas of having kids. I know it can feel hard when there are personal limitations, but I hope you can find someone or a group to invest in. I feel it really makes a difference in my life with similar limitations.

Can you adopt? There are kids out in the world with no one and who bounce from foster home to foster home until they are booted out of the system at 18. Abandoned again.

Focus on really helping people before you slide into depression.

Have you discussed adopting a kid?

Yes, we have. Apparently it's close to impossible to adopt a kid for us, considering that we are in our 40's and that demand is much greater than supply, so they pick younger couples. Also, there seems to be a whole industry pretty much stealing children from poor countries and selling them to couples like us. I do not want to be part of that.

Demand is much greater than supply? I’m pretty surprised to hear this actually. Would you be willing to educate me a little bit about this? My understanding is that there are countless children in foster homes waiting to be adopted.

Demand is incredibly high for babies, and drops off with age.

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