If you’re in your 30s, still ticking off travel bucket lists, and dodging family WhatsApp groups about “settling down,” Preethi Kasireddy has a message for you: “Stop backpacking, start parenting.”
The US-based co-founder of a fertility company set social media on fire when she claimed that having kids offers a far deeper journey of self-discovery than globe-trotting.
In her X post, she wrote, “If you’re in your 30s and still figuring yourself out by traveling the world while being childless, then it’s time to stop. The simple solution to your endless thrust for ‘figuring yourself out’ is to have a child. Children will teach you more about yourself than any backpacking trip you go on.”
And just like that, the internet had another topic to fight about.
While some users applauded her perspective, calling parenthood the ultimate transformative experience, others rolled their eyes harder than a toddler refusing vegetables. One user clapped back, “Parenthood is transformative, no doubt, but self-discovery isn’t a one-size-fits-all journey. Let people choose their own map.”
Another pointed out the obvious, saying, “A child is not a tool to ‘figure yourself out.’ They’re humans, not some DIY self-help project.”
And then there were the balance-seekers, reminding us that both parenting and travel can lead to growth, albeit in very different ways. “You can’t compare the thrill of exploring Machu Picchu with navigating a tantrum in the cereal aisle,” one tweet quipped.
Kasireddy’s post has sparked a bigger conversation. Should life’s big decisions like having kids be dictated by societal timelines? Or is self-discovery a personal journey, as unique as every lost boarding pass and every midnight diaper change?
While the debate rages on, one thing seems clear: whether you choose nappies or passports, there’s no universal map to figuring life out. So maybe the secret is this, stop judging, keep living.
What do you think? Would you trade your passport stamps for a pram? Or are you team “One more trip, please!”?