This Bikini Designer And Influencer Received Serious Backlash For The Reasons She Gave For Not Wanting To Have Children

Influencers who promote body positivity have blown up over the last five years, and Karina Irby is one of the young entrepreneurs benefiting from the new demand for products made and marketing with a range of bodies in mind.

Karina’s company, Moana Bikini, is geared toward all shapes and sizes of swimmers, using models with rare skin conditions, pregnancy stretch marks, and other features rarely seen in swimwear campaigns.

On her personal Instagram, Karina also creates body-positive posts featuring her own perceived “flaws,” writing, “Everyone needs to be kinder to their bodies and to one another.”

A few months ago, the influencer posted an Instagram story about not having kids. And she got an immediate mixed response.

So, she took to the platform the set the record straight, with a post about her and her partner Ryan, boldly titled “WHY WE’RE NOT INTERESTED IN HAVING KIDS.” 

Karina clarifies that she and Ryan adore children but that they’re not in the cards for the couple. Why? They have a booming business and feel like they are raising a child all their own through their work.

If children give our lives a new source of love and meaning, it seems like Karina and Ryan already have this covered.

In the post, Karina writes, “We’re selfish. We LOVE our lives together and having the freedom to do whatever we want, when we want. Our love and the company of one another is enough for us.”

Instagram; pictured above is Karina with her dogs

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Of course, having to justify to outsiders that your life is rich enough, as is, always presents an uphill battle.

But, frankly, the fullness of Karina’s life has nothing to do with anyone else. 

However, being an influencer, Karina feels obligated to explain her life choices to the public, hoping that raising awareness will help her audience better understand friends or family who chose to live the same way.

Creating acceptance for couples who decide not to have kids is a massive hurdle in some cultures and family units.

If Karina and Ryan can make a difference in others’ lives and relationships—and even take some of the pressure off them—we’re thankful they’re doing it.

Karina also supports her choice with solid reasoning. She cites global turmoil as a primary factor in their decision against having a big family. 

“The thought of putting another human on this planet scares me right now.” Karina shares.

“Humanity is single-handedly destroying the planet. Climate change. War. Sickness. Divisive politics. I could go on.” 

“Why on earth would we want to put another person on this planet to clean up, deal with or die in this mess we’ve created,” she asks her followers.

Karina received a lot of criticism for her initial post and even took to Instagram to post some of the disparaging comments she’d received. 

In her new post, she restates her position, expressing that she knows the difference between parenthood and owning your own business—since most of the hateful comments are from parents who resent the comparison.

These parents seem to be competing with Karina to prove that their kids make them more miserable than a business ever could.

But, unfortunately, it appears the irony of their stance is lost on them—and in the same breath as their complaints, they condemn Karina’s choice not to have children. 

One of the commenters seemed to miss her point entirely; “Consume, don’t give…Is it what you’re saying?” The idea that having children is not a consumptive act—when it requires feeding, clothing, and housing a human being for the entirety of their life span—reflects a profound ignorance of our wasteful culture. 

Another mimics her, writing, “I’m having so much fun and my life is so great… but if I have kids I’ll be bringing them into this terrible terrible world. You make no sense.”

This comment seems to misunderstand that a young adult’s pre-existing life, which she has shaped into something fulfilling, would look anything like a child’s life over the next century on Earth.

Some commenters agree with Karina and may even have felt validated in their own decisions by her public statement. One said, “Omg thank you…me and my fiancé (also named Ryan) feel the same way!!!!”

Ultimately, the debate comes down to mutual respect and allowing others to make decisions that we wouldn’t.

In her original post, Karina acknowledges the validity of both having children and not. However, she emphasizes that “your life is yours and yours alone. You need to live each day for you and not for others or their expectations of you.”

This affirmation is especially crucial to remember in a culture that expects, if not pressures, women to have children simply because it’s the norm.

Karina ultimately leaves her audience with a statement that reflects her disappointment in their demeaning and often rude responses.

“I never diminished your journey. I merely expressed my feelings and desires. So don’t diminish mine.” Say it louder for the people in the back! 

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