Member-only story
Why Being a Single Mom at 40-Something is Okay
If you feel like you’re running out of time, maybe this can ease your mind
One of my best friends from high school turned 42 a couple of days ago. That birthday is coming for me in about three months or so. She’s married, I’m not — but we both have two kids. There was a time, when I was still in my 20s and had only been divorced a few years, that the thought of being single at 42 terrified me.
I felt like it said there was something wrong with me. That time was running out. That I was too old to start over, find love, find happiness, or have a full, rich life.
But as the years passed and I began to really work on healing myself, learning who I was, what I wanted, and what I needed, that changed. And if you’re a single mom approaching that 40th birthday, or a 40-something birthday and struggling with those feelings yourself, I want to help change it for you too.
So take a close look at these reasons being a single mom at 40-something is okay.
You know you’ll get through the tough times
When you get into your 40s, you have experienced a lot of life. And if you’re a single mom, some of that life has been pretty tough. You’ve gotten divorced. You’ve probably had a few other failed relationships. You’ve lost a job or ten. You’ve fought with your kids and maybe even heard the dreaded, “I want to live with Dad!” You might even have lost a parent.
And while the memories of all these rough times certainly aren’t pleasant and might make you feel a little down, they have one good thing in common: they remind you that you can, and do, get through the hard times.
Whether it’s surviving the empty nest, another bad breakup, or simply getting through the year 2020, you know that you have what it takes to get through tough times — and that makes you more resilient.
