Study finds that mums of four kids report lower stress levels than those with fewer children

Going from a twosome to three is a shock to anyone's system.

Up until now, from you were old enough to make decisions about yourself without your parents really having a say, you have been in charge. You have decided when you wanted to go to bed, when you wanted to eat and what time you should get up at on the weekends. Up until now, my friend, you could shower whenever you felt like it, linger in the bath for hours should you fancy it, or decide on a whim you wanted to grab dinner somewhere with your friends – and just run along and do so. Once you bring that baby home from the hospital, life as you know it is changed forever. Or, if not forever-forever, than at least for the very foreseeable future. Now, baby is boss and you will find that things which before seemed so simple, so uncomplicated, now all of a sudden require the same amount of planning and preparation as organising a wedding. Or simply not even doable at all.

Sleeping in on the weekends? Good luck. Lingering in the bath? Not unless you are prepared to have to share your relaxing soak with your baby. Running out for a last-minute dinner? Excuse us while we laugh out loud. This, I guess, it why I suppose having that first baby is always the biggest adjustment. Once life already revolves around someone else than yourself, adding to that doesn't turn your world upside down, it just makes life a little bit busier. However, while you may think that a bunch of kids naturally equals more stress – you are actually wrong. At least once you get past the most stressful family size. According to a new survey of more than 7,000 mothers, mums with four (or more) kids actually report lower stress levels than mums of fewer kids. They have to cross a bit of a hurdle to get there – as the survey found that mums of three kids stress more than those of us with just one or two kids. The silver lining? Once you get beyond three, it’s smooth(er) sailing. Exactly why this is becomes a bit of guess, unfortunately. Maybe mums with four or more kids have just surrendered to the chaos and given up trying to have perfectly tidy homes or being on time all the time. Or maybe they have become so accustomed to stress it just doesn't even fly with them. Or maybe it is because it is generally those of us who handle stress well who go on to have larger families in the first place. Regardless the reason, four seems to be the magic number when it comes to a stress free family life.

If a large family is your dream, you might also be interested to learn that a 2016 study of Norwegian kids found those who grow up in large families have fewer mental problems, suggesting the whole households in general are less stressed. In fact, the more siblings a kid has and and the closer in age they are, the more pronounced the stress-reducing effects, according to the researchers.