10 Keys to Surviving as a Single Parent

Whether you’re a new single parent or your situation is changing, there are some key steps to survival.

Photo by Gift Habeshaw on Unsplash

Single parenting, even with a cooperative and supportive co-parent, is very different than parenting with a full partner. And if you’re solo parenting without a co-parent at all, it can be even more different. And whether you planned to be a single parent or it was thrust upon you, the reality of it usually ends up being unlike whatever you might have imagined it would be.

Whether you’re new to single parenting or just dealing with a changing situation, there are some key steps to making sure you make it through.

Put your health & wellbeing first

This feels counterintuitive. You have children, possibly small ones who rely on you for everything. Their helplessness would imply that they should come first. But just as they tell you on a plane that you need to put your air mask on first before helping children, the same holds true for your health and wellbeing.

If you are sick or burnt out, you can’t take care of your children the way they need or deserve. That’s why your health in all its forms needs to come even before your children’s. This isn’t saying you should eat while your…