Christine returned to The Young and the Restless from a trip to Portugal and took a little trip down Memory Lane. She remembered her marriages to Danny and Paul, her rivalry with Phyllis, her friendship with Nina and Lauren, and even her less than savory past with Michael (all his fault, not hers). And then, this woman who has led a full life, had a great career, did lots of good in her community, and kept innocent people out of prison — while putting some bad ones in it (Phyllis, alas, is the one that got away), wondered if that life was a waste….because she never had children. What kind of message is Y&R sending to the child-free by choice women in their audience?

Young and the Restless: Never Had It, Never Will

Those of us who have been watching Y&R for decades know that Christine (Lauralee Bell) was always pretty ambivalent on the topic. When her mother-in-law Mary (Carolyn Conwell) pushed, Christine pushed back. She kept putting off making the decision, much to husband Paul’s (Doug Davidson) chagrin, and, after one miscarriage, the entire conversation was tabled for good.

We assumed Paul made his peace with it and accepted that his wife was uninterested in having children. Since he already had a daughter, maybe he figured that would be enough. We don’t know. All we know is, it was nice to see a woman on daytime not suffering from baby rabies.

Y&R: Second Guessing

Sure, it’s natural to second-guess any decision. People do it all the time. But, on an episode dedicated to celebrating Christine’s life in Genoa City, it struck an odd note to see her regretting something that we were pretty sure she never wanted in the first place. Not having children is a perfectly legitimate decision any woman — and man — has a right to make. Y&R has no business making anyone feel bad about it.