Other Childless Resources
Childless Websites
This page has been updated in March 2022 & I won't be updating it in the future so I've listed just a couple of sites where you can find a list of childless resources.
Joining More to Life (MTL) (the UK charity providing support to those 'facing the challenges of childlessness' was one of the best things my husband and I did. I don’t know where we would be without the support of our M.T.L friends.
Gateway Women is 'passionate and compassionate about the lives and futures of childless women.' They also have a fabulous forum. You can read more here
World Childless Week aims to raise awareness of the childless not by choice (cnbc) community. To help the cnbc find support groups that understand their grief and can help them move forwards to acceptance. WCW has a fabulous list of worldwide resources & you can read more HERE.
Books about coming to terms with childlessness
Here are a few books about childlessness and moving on that I've found helpful.
My two favourite books (and wish I'd written myself 🙂 ) are Lisa's book 'Life Without baby: Surviving and Thriving When Motherhood Doesn't Happen, and Tracey's 'The Next Happy: Let Go of the Life You Planned and Find a New Way Forward. You can read more about them and others below.
Lisa Manterfield has collated her her vast experience of running workshops and writing ebooks into Life Without Baby: Surviving and Thriving When Motherhood Doesn't Happen (Amazon US Link) On the back it says that it 'offers a combination of hard-won lessons, gentle queries, and real world suggestions.' I agree completely that Lisa is a 'comforting and supportive companion who will guide you gently down your own path to making peace with being childfree-not-by-choice and thriving in a new happily ever after.
The incentive for Tracey Cleantis' to write The Next Happy: Let Go of the Life You Planned and Find a New Way Forward (Amazon US Link) was coming to terms with her own childlessness &, as it suggests in the title, her book covers not just childlessness but finding happiness when your plan for life didn't come true.
Other books I love are Pamela Tsigdinos' book 'Silent Sorority (a barren women gets lost, angry, busy and found), 'reveals with candor, humor and poignancy the intense and at times absurd experience of adjusting to a life as a "non-mom" when nature and science don't cooperate in the family building department. Outside of the physical reckoning there lies the challenge of moving forward in a society that doesn't know how to handle the awkwardness of infertility. ' It's available HERE
The intro for Jessica Hepburn's book The Pursuit of Motherhood' says... 'If you’ve ever felt a crumpling in your chest when another friend tells you they’re pregnant… If you’ve ever wondered why everyone else seems to find it so easy…If you’ve ever experienced the pursuit of motherhood...This book is for you'. You can read about this & Jessica's 2 further books, 21 Miles & Save me From The Waves (both of which I also recommend) HERE.
Jody Day's book 'Living the Life Unexpected: 12 Weeks to Your Plan B for a Meaningful and Fulfilling Future Without Children' gives you a 12 week programme to create a meaningful life. You can read more about it and the reviews here.
You can read about other books that have helped me here.
