Single parenting and dual parenting has always been a hot discussion on which family a child would benefit more from. These two different households both have challenges and obstacles that each parent or parents deal with on a daily basis. I have to deal with both of these parenting styles. With my daughter, her father is greatly involved in her life. We share custody of her so we both parenting her and we communicate with each other on issues that come up with her. I am also a single parent with my son. His father is not involved in his life at all so I am the sole parent for him. I know first-hand how each of these parents feel.
As single parents we feel guilty about a lot of things. To name a few there is the guilt of not having that father figure in their child’s life. There is also the guilt of not being able to provide for them as much as they could if the other parent was around. Another is the guilt of thinking “If only, I would have done that instead, I wouldn’t be in this situation now”. But being a single parent you have to look past these feelings and strive to be the best that you can. This leads me to my next point.
Responsibility – I think that children that are being raised in a single parent household have more responsibilities and chores to do around the house. These children may have to either get dinner started or make their own because the mom/dad may have to work late. Plus, if there are younger siblings involved, naturally the oldest child would be responsible for looking after them. I believe that this causes the kid or kids to grow up faster and become more mature. This can make the children unable to really enjoy their childhood.
Stress is something that single parents struggle with every day; but unfortunately, single parents are under just a tad bit more stress. These parents don’t have a partner to turn to for help, their all alone and are so afraid to ask for help because