Single Parenting

What is a single-parent family?

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A family comprising of children headed by a single parent. Single-parent problems include having to adapt to a drop in income, a compromised lifestyle, and even a change in house or neighborhood. The challenges of being a single mother are overwhelming and it requires a single parent to combine the roles of two people to raise the children and run the house.

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No one chooses to be a single parent, in most cases, it is always fate. It comes with its own share of fun and challenges. Single parenting issues can plague an individual sapping them of their energy, confidence, and happiness, and increase in psychosocial problems, and illnesses associated with stress. The challenges differ for both males and females.

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Causes

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• Separation and Divorce.

• Widowhood

• Single Parent by choice.

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Challenges

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• Loneliness. You have to deal with the loss of a partner and the gap they left in your life. There is no one to offer a shoulder to lean on. The stress of making decisions alone. No one to pass the baton

• The memories of the good moments you shared with your spouse and the children dawn on you.

• Difficulty in instilling discipline in children and navigating the unknown avenues of single parenting.

• Low self-esteem. and guilt...Whether I have done something wrong. Should not have separated. It starts feeling pressure from a judgemental society.

• Financial burden.

• Insecurity among children and many more.

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How to cope with the challenges

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1. Don't feel guilty. Enjoy confidence and independence.

2. If possible consult your ex about how to raise your children and combine your efforts as parents, to work as a team. keep at least a small channel of civilized communication open between you and your ex. Whether it’s through phone calls, texts, e-mails, or the mediation of friends and relatives.

3. Prepare yourself with the question a child may ask about the father or mother not being around.

4. Don’t be afraid to ask for your family’s help or to confide in a friend. It’s normal to feel overburdened and to need time to settle your thoughts.

5. keep your relatives close, because their help may turn out to be invaluable.

6. A single parent due to death can engage their extended family to act as a father or a mother figure (whichever is missing) to counter the absence of the other parent. This is only effective when there is a close tie over time.

7. Consult relationship counselors and psychologists to deal with emotional instability in the children that brew indiscipline as an after-effect of single parenting. 

8. Engage in activities that will help you regain your lost sense of self-worth. 

9. Surround yourself with people who believe in you and understand your predicament without any judgment.

10. Sit down with the children and agree on how to cut on some of the luxuries so that you do not strain too much on trying to maintain the lifestyle.

11. Try to find a new hobby, make new friends, and go out once in a while. What you shouldn’t do is allow yourself to be lonely, you’re entitled to happiness.

12. Stay positive.

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In short, Single parenting doesn’t need to be a tumultuous experience. It has been seen that children raised by single parents are generally just as happy as children living with two biological parents. Whether you're a single parent or partnered, if you spend time with your child, he's more likely to be happy. With persistent efforts, you can surely turn single parenting into a smooth sail.