I started out on this motherhood path rather young—23, when my first daughter was born. I didn’t feel particularly young at the time and definitely did not feel “too young” to be a mom. I thought that I would become a mom again as an older parent, but that hasn’t happened yet so now, in my forties, I am a typical mom of teens. I have friends, however, who have both been “young” parents like me and waited until recently to embark on the path of parenthood. What I am unclear about is whether the parenting experience is really all that different for young and/or older parents…
I couldn’t wait to be a mom and I felt fortunate that I didn’t have to wait very long. I still get comments from people that I seem “too young” to have three nearly grown kids but I have never put much stock in such comments. I know how old I FEEL some days (and how young I feel on others). Plus, I remember a good friend telling me when I was in my twenties that having kids had aged me by ten years! He thought he was being helpful and honest, I thought he was being a stinker.
I have not completely ruled out having more children and I guess that is one of the advantages of starting so young—I really could start over and raise another “set” of kids if I want to. That is probably the only way I will experience first hand whether there are any differences between parenting as a young mom and parenting as an older one. When I watch my friends who are just starting out, I think they are wise and patient in many ways, relaxed in some ways, while in other ways—they are more self-conscious and more apt to spoil their kids than I was with mine. Of course, they are in a better financial situation and more “evolved” in their lives overall than I was when I was in my early twenties.
I would love to hear from some of you who have been both young and “older” parents—is it different? If so, how? Do people treat you differently or do you think that one age approach is “better” than the other? Is there really a big difference between parenting as a young adult or as an older one?
Also: Study Says Older Moms Live Longer
Why Some Older Parents are Hesitant to Discipline