Search Results for: blog there will be days when the exhaustion is unbearable

There Are People Who Are Having a Harder Time

I have found for myself that what keeps me from feeling sorry for myself or getting lost in a sea of single parent self-pity is to simply remember and remind myself that there ARE people who are having a harder time of things. For some reason, it seems to be human nature to get stuck in that “grass is greener” mentality and think that everyone has it better. But that is definitely NOT the case, and there are plenty of people who deserve our compassion and understanding as they have it far worse than we do. You may have heard … Continue reading →

There Will be Days When the Exhaustion is Unbearable

I try to take a positive, encouraging tone when I write here in the Single Parents blog, but someone recently asked me if I wasn’t glossing over some of the realities and challenges of being a single parent. After all, for most of us, it is no walk in the park. I got to thinking that while exhaustion is not something that can be solely claimed by single parents, in my own experience, I never really, truly experienced utter exhaustion until after I became a solo parent… I think it helps to know that nothing lasts forever–even the exhaustion! We … Continue reading →

Staying Up Too Late, Getting Up Too Early

It is not uncommon for the average single parent to have sleep issues. I think most of us would confess to NOT getting enough sleep on a regular basis but are there things we can do to try to minimize how tired we feel all the time. Perhaps it is just a simple case of staying up too late or waking or getting up too early… It is amazing to me how little decisions like whether or not to stay up and watch that television program can affect a person’s entire sleep schedule and then have influence over how we … Continue reading →

Am I a Slacker if I Just Get Tired?

I confessed yesterday in my writing that I have a tendency to wrestle with that “should” voice—the one that haunts me with all those things I let myself think I should and could be doing. Last night, however, I started thinking about how I have a tendency to feel like I’m a slacker if I am not always working, parenting, keeping house, whatever. Since there is always something to do in my single parent world—when I get tired and worn out, it is hard for me NOT to feel like I am being a slacker… The reality for many single … Continue reading →

Quieting the “Should” Voice

From the conversations I have had with other single parents, I know that I am not alone when I confess to wrestling with the “shoulds”–it doesn’t seem to matter WHAT I am doing; how I have carefully organized my time or how productive I am attempting to be, I cannot help but think of all the other things that I SHOULD be doing too (or instead). Even if I am making the best possible decision for the moment, there always seem to be a dozen other things that I could or think that maybe I should be doing… What an … Continue reading →

Rising to the Occasion

When I was writing earlier today about how we can gain perspective as single parents and suggesting ways to NOT focus on how bad we might think we have things, I realized that I know several single parents, or people who have had a hard time that have surprised themselves with how they have been able to adjust. I really do think we are all capable of rising to the occasion and once we expand to meet the challenges of what life has asked of us, we are often able to see how capable we really are. We humans can … Continue reading →

Have You Heard the Term “Time Poverty”?

I was flipping through a business trade magazine this morning while sitting at my desk and came across an article that used the term “time poverty”—I haven’t heard this term before, or if I have I missed it. I decided it was the perfect term for a harried single parent—if there is one term that can often describe my wrestling with time issues it would be “time poverty”! Like many single parents, I have definitely teetered on the edge of the more traditional idea of poverty—one adult, one income and a family to support does not make for the most … Continue reading →

Strong Parent Emotions Can be Scary

It is not uncommon or unhealthy for us single parents to experience some really strong emotions–whether we are in the midst of a separation or a divorce, or have been through the death of a spouse–strong emotions are really part of the package. It is important to remember, however, that for children, our bubbling over and erupting with strong emotions can be a very scary experience. I have written before about how are children need to be able to trust that we have things under control and that we are in charge. Of course, it is only human that we … Continue reading →