SINGAPORE: After noticing that more and more Singaporeans are choosing to remain childless, a woman got curious and asked on an online forum, “What are your plans for the time when you turn old?”
In her post, the woman clarified that she was not particularly concerned about the financial aspect of things, as many of them would undoubtedly be able to save a substantial amount of money.
Instead, her interest lay in how they planned to navigate life in their golden years without the family or social support that older generations often have from their kids and grandkids.
“I absolutely don’t mean to suggest that people should have kids just so that there’s someone to take care of them in old age (and I don’t think that this is right either) but I think that it’s good to have a plan in place, so I’m curious about what other people think,” she said.
“My plan is to get into some assisted co-living spaces in Singapore.”
The woman’s question stirred up quite a conversation on the forum, with many participants chiming in to share their perspectives and plans for the future.
Some individuals stated that even if they do decide to have children later in life, they wouldn’t want to burden them with the responsibility of being ‘their caregiver.’
One person said, “If you’ve taken care of ailing parents or relatives, you’d know how much of a mental strain and burden it is on the carer. Even if I have kids, I wouldn’t want them to do that.”
Another commented, “You don’t want your family or kids to ever take care of you. It creates nothing but stress and pain on the kids.”
Some mentioned that they are proactively setting aside funds to ensure they can afford to check into senior nursing homes or hire a domestic helper to assist them with their needs in the future.
One individual said, “I’ve allocated a sum of money for the geriatric care of my wife and I, that is on top of our retirement funds. But we also try to maintain a healthy lifestyle, a balanced diet, regular exercises.”
Another added, “My plan is to get into some assisted co-living spaces in Singapore. If it’s too expensive, I will try to look for options in Malaysia.”
However, a few stated that if they ever reach a point where they can’t eat, change, move around, shower, or use the toilet without assistance, then they would take this as a sign that “it’s time for them to go.”
One individual expressed, “Hopefully assisted euthanasia will be a thing by then. If not here, then somewhere else.”
Read also: “Support yourself for life” — Elderly aunty who works hard as a cleaner inspires Singaporeans
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