Search Results for: blog single parent child abuse and neglect

Reach Out To Other Single Parents

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Recently there was a story in the news about three small children being abandoned in a vacant shed where other homeless people were living. The children were all under three years old. This got me thinking about the really dark side of single parenting. For most of us single parenting is a challenge but it is not impossible. We have the support of friends and family, our ex’s are involved with our children and we are able to financially keep our heads above water, at least most of the time.. This is not the case for all single mothers. Some … Continue reading →

A Ban on Divorce?

I don’t usually get involved in politics, but recently Wisconsin representative, Don Pridemore, addressed something that I just cannot ignore. He firmly believes that divorce should not ever be an option, even if you are being abused. He claims that if you think about the reason you got married in the first place, essentially that should solve all of your marital problems. Now, don’t get me wrong, I am very pro-marriage. Divorce is never something to take lightly, it certainly isn’t for everyone, but for many of us, it was the right thing. People have their agency. They make choices … Continue reading →

Single Parent = Child Abuse and Neglect

Most of the time I consider myself a sane and rational human being, I would like to think that most of the time the rest of the world is sane and rational as well. Especially the people who write our laws, I want them to be intelligent and compassionate, I want them to look out for children, but I don’t want them to write laws that will point the finger at me because I am a single parent. Today I am not rational at all, as a matter of fact I am quite livid. Wisconsin State Senator Glenn Grotham has … Continue reading →

911 Abuse

As a former television reporter, every once and a while I had the rare opportunity to cover the elusive positive news story. The glitter hearts/puppies/rainbows/unicorn pieces typically manifested themselves in side of the highway births that yielded healthy babies, multi-million dollar lottery winners and EMT saves dog trying to save owner trying to save cat from rushing flood waters. However, the positive stories that had the greatest impact on me as a single, yet dating, TV reporter were the ones that involved kids whose calls to 911 actually helped save the lives of their loved ones. I’ll never forget the … Continue reading →

Do You Punish Your Kids For Swearing?

If you do, then you might want to rethink your discipline strategy, especially if it includes washing your kid’s mouth out with soap. My parents made the popular soap-eating threat on numerous occasions while I was growing up, though thankfully, they never had to follow through. Such is not the case with a Florida family, who recently made headlines for taking the soap punishment to extremes. According to news reports, Florida police jailed and charged Wilfredo Rivera and Adriyanna Herdener with neglect of a child and child abuse for forcing an eight-year-old girl to chew on soap after she swore … Continue reading →

Teens who Choose Adoption More Likely to Succeed–So Why Don’t More Teens Choose It?

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We’ve been talking about educating youth about adoption, caring for babies, and life in general. In the middle of the twentieth century, the majority of girls and young women who gave birth while unmarried placed their babies for adoption. Now, the figure is less than two percent in most areas. The director of our agency’s adoption program told us that most of the birth mothers in their program were college-age. He said almost all of the high school students decided to parent their babies. Yet, most social service workers agree that children of single teenage mothers are at higher risk … Continue reading →

Living with a Parent with Borderline Personality Disorder (1)

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It’s not easy living with any person who suffers from emotional instability but it is particularly difficult when you are a child in that situation. In fact, even when you are an adult, it can still be difficult to cope with such a parent. This is particularly the case with Borderline Personality Disorder. In Borderline Personality Disorder: Diagnostic Criteria , we looked at the characteristic requirements necessary to be diagnosed with this confronting disorder. Today we look at what it is like to grow up with a parent suffering from this condition. Anna’s mother Claire had shown signs of emotional … Continue reading →

Spanking: Risks and Legal Concerns

First of all, I want to start right off by saying I am not an attorney. However, I worked for almost 10 years as a Child Protective Services (CPS) Caseworker investigating allegations of abuse and neglect, and testifying in Court. I have seen a lot of really bad things happen to kids. I have also seen a lot of good parenting, and parents who just need a little support and help. Spanking is one of the main questions people ask me about when it concerns CPS. Some of the questions concerning spanking that I will address: 1. Is it legal … Continue reading →

Kinship Adoption and Its Advantages

Naturally, all adoptions are about creating real kinship relationships, but the term “kinship adoption” refers to members of the extended birth family assuming a parental role. Most often, the kinship adopter is a grandmother. The next most common kinship adopter is an aunt. (The term kinship adoption is not referring to the common situation of a stepparent adopting his/her partner’s child. This process is usually referred to as “second parent adoption”.) There are many advantages to kinship adoption. The most obvious advantage is that, if the relatives are known to the child, the move will be much less traumatic than … Continue reading →

Surround Yourself with Safe People

We often talk about the importance of a support network for a single parent and it is imperative that we find friends and family who can lend a hand, offer support and encouragement, and bolster us in our lives as a single parent. It is also important, however, that we learn how to identify and choose “safe” people to support and love our families. Depending on where you are coming from in your life, it might be easy or challenging to choose safe people to surround yourself with. Some of us have strong and healthy boundaries already, or we are … Continue reading →