When you get married and you’re a woman marriage isn’t the only change you have to think about. The biggest question is, last names.
Keep yours, Change it, Hyphenate, or Create your own
Everyone has mixed emotions about it some think about it in a very traditional way, others in a very women empowerment way. I am here to talk about it in a very realistic way.
Keeping Yours
I understand the appeal it’s been the last name you’ve had your entire life and now you’re expected to change it because why? Because some age old tradition tells you that upon marrying someone means you must now change your name, change your entire identity because what? You fell in love? I get it I really do. There’s plenty of reasons to keep it, there’s also plenty of reasons to change it. Have you thought about the fact that your future children and you will not share the same last name. Neither would you and your husband which could make future medical or legal situations complicated. Which to me, was a big weight in my decision.
Hyphenating
I did consider hyphenating my name, for a while actually if we are being completely honest but eventually I decided against it. Hyphenating gives you the illusion that you could have the best of both worlds but then you think about how long your legal name would be. You also realize that places will leave off your second name. In the long run, you’ll end up going by one name or the other and well then you end up choosing either way.
Changing it
The idea of changing your last name is traditional I get it. Women empowerment and all that but this isn’t just about that. It’s about starting your new family, whether that’s you and your new husband or if there are a few kids in the mix. I also understand that you can feel like you’re leaving your family behind but the truth is that that can’t be further from the truth.
Making your own
I personally really dislike this option. Here’s why, because keeping your name, hyphenating, or changing it all mean something great and it means something related to either your family history or his or both. Some would argue that making your own is creating your own history but realistically picking another name is just another families history. Also no one wants you to create one by combining your first names, just trust me on that.
Pick what suits you and this new wonderful phase of your life because remember that it’s just that, a new wonderful phase of your life.