Definition: Given a real-life anecdote of a complex ethical situation, generate a suitable title that describes the main event/root cause of the situation. Imagine that the given text is a social media post, and you have to write the title of the post, so the users can decide to read the main text or not.
Input: I (F) have tokophobia, a phobia which makes childbirth almost impossible for me. I have no desire to get pregnant because I’m terrified of the pregnancy process, childbirth, pain, and the effects on my body post childbirth. I’m also emotionally sensitive and am susceptible to severe depression and anxiety, which I inherit from my mother, and I know that she experienced postpartum depression after I was born.

I know that if I go through pregnancy, I’m going to suffer horribly, both physically and emotionally. I’ve also attempted suicide when I was younger and I’m terrified those thoughts could spring back. I’m terrified I won’t love my baby or my life because of my hormonal mood swings and depression, and I might do something stupid.

So I don’t want to be pregnant. I would be much happier using a surrogate mother or adopting. My husband would prefer biological children, but he’s willing to support me with whatever decision I make.

The issue is that my parents (my mom specifically) are desperate for grandchildren. My older sisters haven’t had kids yet — one of my sisters is gay with marital issues, and my other (straight) sister is having trouble finding someone compatible with her lifestyle. So me, being the youngest and in a relationship with a man, are my parents best hope.

I’ve brought up my fears of pregnancy before and my mother told me that I “better get pregnant”, she wants a biological grandchild (really weird to me, I can understand wanting biological kids, but why grandkids?). I know she would judge me harshly and we already have a really rocky relationship.

I want to lie to her and tell her that I’m infertile and can’t get pregnant. This would be so much easier than telling her, and I feel like she would accept my future children more knowing that I had no other option.

Would I be the asshole? It would be a lie about my decisions, but it wouldn’t be lying about who the child’s genetics actually belong to or where they came from. 

lying to my parents and telling them I'm infertile