#1 You also don’t have to feel like a traitor to feminism if you want children more than you want a career.
Some people want kids more than they want other things. It's fine.
#2 Because you are, in fact, not old.
It is weird to think that kids born in the mid-1990s are in college now? Yes. But this does not make you an actual old person. The actual old people are just laughing at you when you say that.
#3 You aren’t the only one who isn’t sure that marriage might not be right for you.
Marriage isn't for everyone and the expectation that it should be a life goal for all women isn't going away fast enough.
#4 You are not stuck forever in the career you chose in your twenties.
It is OK to make career mistakes and to change your mind. Your skills are probably more transferrable than you realize, and the message that you should be grateful to have any job could be keeping you unhappy. Everyone is changing jobs don't worry about it too much.
#5 When you turn 30, you will be joining a fabulous cohort of total babes doing amazing things and giving no fucks.
See you ladies there!
#6 You don’t have to be certain if you want children or not.
Yes, you do have to figure it out at some point. No, you don't have to know 100% right now.
#7 Single women don’t actually have to think about just settling at this point.
You're 29, not 92! And even if you are 92, you should still only be with someone you actually like and care about.
#8 Being open about desires for a long-term relationship don’t make you look desperate.
Too many women are told that they appear to have no chill just because they want a long-term partner. It is 100% normal to want the security, love, and affirmation of a relationship and there even health benefits. We shouldn't be made to feel like losers for expressing these desires.
#9 Women who focused on parenting in their twenties and women who focused on their careers in their twenties both wonder if it was the right call.
We all made choices that we are rarely 100% sure about. Don't think the grass is always greener on the other side.
#10 Male fertility declines with age too, even though the onus is put on women to keep track of it.
So you know, bring that up from time to time so that dudes in their fifties don't try to pressure you into marrying them when you don't want to.
#11 All the things you think you have to do before you turn 30 you can still do after you turn 30.
Olivia Pope is over 30 and she does WHAT SHE WANTS.
#12 You do not look as old as beauty commercials tell you.
Seriously, the number of people who can't tell the difference between a 24-year-old and 29-year-old based on appearance is a very large number. And furrowing your brow in worry is just going to make it worse.
#13 Older people who shame your spending and saving habits are out of touch and wrong.
Older people love to wag their fingers at us for not saving enough money, not buying enough houses and cars, and not investing in enough stocks. What they don't love to do is admit that they are the ones who steered the economy into the toilet, raised the cost of higher education, and refuse to retire from the high-paying jobs that allow people to save money. Save what you can, when you can.
#14 You don’t have to be certain what you would do with an unintended pregnancy.
Getting pregnant is a big fuckin' deal at any age so beating yourself up over it because of your age is just an added point of stress you don't need for making an informed decision that is right for you.
#15 And it is OK if your wedding is not really the best day of your life.
You can't necessarily schedule the best day of your life, and those 26.5 million Google results that show some people actively hated their weddings prove you're not alone if your big bay is kind of a blah day.
#16 Turning 30 is also not going to magically eliminate your sexual and romantic appeal.
Oh, right, the Great Man Drought. What a tragedy it was when the men all shriveled up and left our old asses to die with barren wombs. The truth is that there are a lot of people who avoid dating women over a certain age even if they are well above that age themselves. They are called "assholes." People who believe that women become haggard shrews at 28 are not the kind of people you want to date anyway.
