A woman in a DINK relationship has divided opinion online after sharing a video explaining the benefits of it.
Although the acronym looks a bit suspect for some reason, it doesn’t stand for anything that outlandish – however, a host of social media users have still taken offence to it.
Sana Akhand, 35, sparked a fiery debate in the comment section of one of her TikTok posts after uploading a clip detailing the reasoning behind her and her husband’s decision to become DINKs.
Sana Akhand shared the benefits of being in a DINK relationship (Instagram/@sanaakhand)
For those who have no idea what these four letters stand for, it simply refers to a couple who have ‘Dual Income, No Kids’.
These people have two lots of earnings to play with and don’t have to spend a penny on any little Rugrats, so as you can imagine, they’ve often got a nice amount stashed away in the bank.
There’s love and marriage, but just no baby carriage, essentially.
Whether it’s to prioritise their careers, achieving financial stability or simply because they just don’t want to, DINKs choose not to bring any new life into this world.
In Sana’s case, it all comes down to her and her spouse’s decision to put themselves first in life and protect their ‘core values of freedom’.
In the video, which was originally shared online last year, the content creator said: “When my husband and I started dating, we both fell in love with how independent we were and how dedicated we were to our careers, ambition, our purpose and our devotion to our own individual happiness.
“So early on – I was 24 when we were dating – we decided that we were not interested in having kids. But I also knew that I was very young and I may change my mind.
“So I never made any definitive decisions, I just said, ‘Yes, not having children sounds really, really nice but I can’t promise you that at 24’.”
Sana explained that she and her husband – who she has been married to for ten years – realised they had made the right call a few years later after her friends and siblings started having babies.
“It reinforced the decision for us because we saw just how much it changes your lifestyle…and my husband and I have an amazing life, we do whatever we want,” she said.
While being DINKs, Sana says her and her partner have lived separately in their own apartments in New York ‘while being happily married’, moved to Los Angeles and also purchased a home in Seattle.
She and her husband decided not to have kids when they first started dating and still feel the same ten years later (Instagram/@sanaakhand)
“We are both able to be untethered and move based on our careers and based on what we want in life,” she continued.
“Not to say that you can’t do those things while having kids, but kids are expensive.
“We were both raised in the generation with immigrant parents who had to work so incredibly hard just to afford the bare minimum of the life we both got to live.
“We both felt neglected. I think that a child deserves to come into this world with parents who are fully excited and devoted to the child and putting the child’s wants and needs first.
“The child deserves that. And until we are ready to do that for another human being, we chose to be child free.”
A host of people flooded the comment section with support and praise for Sana, but not everyone was a fan of her touting DINK relationships online.
One said: “Having kids gives you a sense of fulfilment. A wholesome feeling. Nothing in this world can ever come close to the satisfaction of being a mom.”
Another wrote: “Happiness, success all can be achieved while having kids, biggest blessings.”
A third added: “That’s an individual choice but having kids makes you happy, unselfish and leaving your legacy to the world. My opinion though.”
On the other side of the coin, tons of people leapt to Sana’s defence while applauding her for prioritising herself.
One commented: “As a mum of three I totally agree with you. While I love my kids, I miss my independence and freedom.”
Another wrote: “Don’t get the comment section, she explained her choice, this has nothing to do with us…girl knows what she wants and she should be celebrated for that.”
And another chimed in: “Love this! Let’s normalise if we would like to be selfish!! Some dream of having kids and some dream of being selfish and living free!”
So, where do you stand on DINK couples?