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The Kids or Childfree Podcast

The Kids or Childfree Podcast

By: Keltie Maguire
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About this listen

 Should I have kids? If you're on the fence about whether or not to have kids, this is your podcast. Each week, host and Clarity Coach, Keltie Maguire, will interview a wide-ranging host of different voices — from best-selling authors to outdoor adventurers to health experts — about their personal Kids or Childfree decision and the topics that run alongside this choice. From new and long-time moms to the currently ambivalent to those who are childfree by choice, you'll get to hear the answers to all the questions you can't seem to get straight answers on. What's it really like being a parent? What happens to childfree people when they get old? Do people who don't have kids regret it? Can you ever really be ready to have a child? And perhaps most importantly: How can I make my own Kids or Childfree decision?© 2024 Parenting & Families Relationships Social Sciences
Episodes
  • 75. Ruthie Ackerman on The Mother Code

    75. Ruthie Ackerman on The Mother Code
    Aug 6 2025
    In this conversation, writer and author of The Mother Code, Ruthie Ackerman, shares her personal journey from being childfree to becoming a mother, exploring the complexities of motherhood, societal expectations, and the emotional struggles that accompany the decision to have children. You'll hear Ruthie and Keltie discuss: How Ruthie decided to pursue motherhood in spite of her ambivalence, and being only 55% confident in her choice to have kids. How being from a long lineage of women who left their children, meant Ruthie was scared she would do the same. Why a difference of opinion about kids meant the end of her marriage, and how Ruthie navigated dating while pursuing motherhood. Ruthie's experiences with egg freezing, IVF, and egg donation. How Ruthie's book, The Mother Code, seeks to dismantle traditional notions of motherhood, while highlighting the ambivalence many women feel about motherhood. Why those who become mothers need to identify and create their own version of motherhood, rather than the versions that have been given to them. As mentioned in the show: Find Ruthie online at www.ruthieackerman.com You can find her book, The Mother Code, all places that books are sold: ruthieackerman.com/the-mother-code And on Instagram: www.instagram.com/ruackerman/ About Ruthie: Ruthie began her writing career with a promise: to shine a light on the people, places, and ideas that are too often ignored. After a stint at the New York Times and a few years reporting on the economy for Forbes, she was awarded journalism fellowships to war-torn Liberia and Lebanon to showcase young people in both countries who were rebuilding their lives out of the ashes of destruction—and finding the resilience to push forward. In the decade since, she has profiled game-changing entrepreneurs and social activists and written extensively about the professional and financial advancement of women. Ruthie wrote a piece for the New York Times Modern Love column about her own failed egg freezing. “Don’t Put All Your (Frozen) Eggs in One Basket,” which became the launching point for her memoir, The Mother Code: My Story of Love, Loss, And The Myths That Shape Us (May 2025, Penguin Random House), and shifted her focus from traditional reporting to personal stories. She started Ignite Writers Collective in 2019 as a way to work with other writers at all stages of their careers, sharing her insights from years as an editor and writer. Her clients have gotten book deals, published essays, and found the bravery to share their stories with the world. Ruthie’s writing has been published in Vogue, Glamour, O Magazine, The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Salon, Slate, Newsweek, and more. Most recently, she was the Deputy Editor at ForbesWomen. She has a Master's in Journalism from NYU and lives in Brooklyn with her husband and their daughter. Ruthie’s forthcoming memoir, The Mother Code, will be released in 2025 by Random House. __ Get details on an upcoming Kids or Childfree Workshop: kidsorchildfree.com/workshop Check out our free resources here, or at kidsorchildfree.com/free-resources And don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review The Kids or Childfree Podcast if you love what you’re hearing! You can leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, or a rating on Spotify. Find us online at www.kidsorchildfree.com. Instagram: www.instagram.com/kidsorchildfree
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    1 hr and 4 mins
  • 74. Keltie Maguire on The Key Beliefs I Needed to Change to Make my Kids or Childfree Choice

    74. Keltie Maguire on The Key Beliefs I Needed to Change to Make my Kids or Childfree Choice
    Jul 30 2025

    In this solo episode of the Kids or Childfree Podcast, Keltie shares four key beliefs that she had to shift in order to embrace her childfree choice.

    You'll hear her discuss:

    • The myth of the lightbulb moment.

    • Why she needed to debunk the idea of there being a right and wrong choice.

    • Why it was key to remember that there is more than one path to a happy life.

    • Why she had to see life as something she chose - rather than it being something that happened to her.

    __

    Check out our free resources here, or at kidsorchildfree.com/free-resources

    And don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review The Kids or Childfree Podcast if you love what you’re hearing!

    You can leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, or a rating on Spotify.

    Find us online at www.kidsorchildfree.com.

    Instagram: www.instagram.com/kidsorchildfree
    Show More Show Less
    19 mins
  • 73. Elissa Strauss on When You Care

    73. Elissa Strauss on When You Care
    Jul 23 2025

    In this conversation, Keltie is speaking with mom, essayist, and author, Elissa Strauss, about her book 'When You Care: The Unexpected Magic of Caring for Others'.

    Hear her and Keltie discuss:

    • Elissa's personal experience with motherhood, including the parts she was most afraid of.

    • The complexities of caregiving, particularly in the context of motherhood.

    • How to navigate the challenge of maintaining self-identity while parenting.

    • How social media is shaping perceptions of motherhood — and the messiness of real-world care.

    • Why we need a broader understanding of care that transcends traditional roles and highlights the transformative potential of caregiving experiences.

    • The magic of caring for others — and how we can experience this, no matter what we ultimately choose.

    As mentioned in the show:

    Elissa is online at www.elissastrauss.com

    Pick up a copy of When You Care: simonandschuster.com/books/When-You-Care/Elissa-Strauss/9781982169275

    Read Elissa's Substack at elissa.substack.com/

    The piece Elissa's husband wrote about the impact of not breastfeeding their kids is here: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/23/opinion/sunday/formula-breastfeeding-fatherhood.html

    Tune into the How the Wise One Grows episode featuring Elissa: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5IHtrBPfmBMO55I7Mz9sKm

    Tune into the How the Wise One Grows episode featuring Keltie: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1Iw67drKUnzd1q1WjuzhUW?si=wCPBHC4vRa2Uwc-CGLO9dQ



    Find Elissa on social media:

    @elissaavery on IG

    facebook.com/elissa.strauss.7

    linkedin.com/in/elissa-strauss-742720112/

    About Elissa:

    Elissa Strauss is the author of When You Care: The Unexpected Magic of Caring for Others. She is a journalist, essayist, and opinion writer, and contributes to publications like the New York Times, The Atlantic, Glamour, and elsewhere.

    __


    Get details on our upcoming Kids or Childfree Support Series here: kidsorchildfree.com/kids-or-childfree-support-series

    Check out our free resources here, or at kidsorchildfree.com/free-resources

    And don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review The Kids or Childfree Podcast if you love what you’re hearing!

    You can leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts, or a rating on Spotify.

    Find us online at www.kidsorchildfree.com.

    Instagram: www.instagram.com/kidsorchildfree
    Show More Show Less
    58 mins
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