A couple have chosen not to have children because they don’t want to miss out on the benefits of being childfree, admitting they felt ‘no calling’ to be parents.
Helene and Michael Sula, both 36, grew up Catholic in Dallas, Texas, and saw having children as the next step after marriage.
However, while the duo was having a good time at Belgium’s Tomorrowland festival, they had an epiphany that they didn’t want to “miss out” on future trips.
In the future, Helene and Michael began to think of themselves as DINKS, which stands for “double income, no children.”
A couple have chosen not to have children because they don’t want to miss out on the benefits of being childfree, admitting they didn’t feel a ‘calling’ to be parents
Helene, 36, and Michael Sula, 36, grew up Catholic in Dallas, Texas, and considered having children as the next step after getting married
However, when the duo had a good time at Belgium’s Tomorrowland festival (pictured), they had an epiphany that they didn’t want to ‘miss’ future trips
Helene and Michael, who run a travel blog together, said they had no “calling” to have children and that it didn’t feel “right” to just have them.
Instead, their child-free lifestyle has allowed them to live in Germany, the US and Britain and visit 56 countries and counting.
Helene, who currently lives in Oxford, said: ‘We are in an incredible time where we can do whatever we want in life.
‘We live the dream. We prioritize experiences over everything else.”
Helene and Michael met in high school and married in 2011 at the age of 24, and always thought having children would be the next step.
But after going to the Tomorrowland festival in July 2012, they realized they didn’t necessarily see children in their future.
“We thought, ‘There’s so much more we’re missing,’” Helene said.
Helene started and grew a travel blog after a climbing injury kept her from her job in marketing and PR.
The couple’s childfree lifestyle has allowed them to live in Germany, the US and Britain and visit 56 countries.
Helene, a travel blogger currently living in Oxford, said: ‘We are in an incredible time where we can do whatever we want in life. We live the dream. We prioritize experiences’
‘We missed children, but there is so much to discover. There is no wrong or right way. I thought I wanted to have children at a younger age, but I reset my frame,” Helene said
The couple then decided to move to Germany in 2016 – and traveled around Europe.
“We missed out on children, but there is so much to discover,” Helene said.
‘There is no wrong or right way. I had thought I wanted to have children at a younger age, but reset my framework and realized it wasn’t for me.”
The couple loves the “spontaneity” of going on date nights or getting away at the last minute.
“We met our friends in Croatia with a four-month-old son and they hadn’t had a date night in a year,” Michael said.
‘I think raising children is one of the most important things you can do in life.
“It’s such a selfless thing to do. You have to be sure you want one.
‘I’ve never felt that so strongly. I don’t feel a calling to be a parent and it didn’t feel right to do it because it’s ‘done’.”
Helena and Michael moved back to Dallas, Texas in 2019 and traveled around the US, but moved to Oxford, UK in October 2023.
They can work online while traveling and have visited 56 countries including Iceland, Croatia and Morocco.
Helene and Michael met in high school (pictured) and married in 2011 at the age of 24, and had always thought having children would be the next step
But after going to the Tomorrowland festival in July 2012, they realized they didn’t necessarily see children in their future. We had our picture taken together in high school
‘I want to experience as many places as possible. There’s no end to it,” Michael said.
‘Helene’s favorite places to visit are New England and the Christmas markets in Germany and France.’
The couple said their family was supportive, but strangers kept asking when they were having children.
For now, it’s something Helene and Michael don’t see in their future, but they haven’t completely ruled it out.
“Some people say it’s not selfish not to have children,” Michael said.
“We feel more comfortable with the idea of not having children than we did before.
“The life we live is so much more worthwhile to me.”