Motherhood is hard, and so is fatherhood. While being a parent is great, there are parts of it that are extremely challenging, and it is not a job for the faint of heart. However, that is even more true when it comes to parents who are single. They often have to play the roles of both parents, instead of just one, which is very hard. But things have been even harder for single parents during recent times because of COVID-19.
BabyGaga recently got the chance to speak with Michael Bloch, who is the CEO and founder of Pillar, about this topic. He explains, "Many people are still adjusting to the new reality of being full-time work-from-home employees as well as full-time caregivers. Let’s be honest – it’s not easy to do this, especially for single parents that must take on this whole responsibility themselves."
Bloch adds, "If possible, identify nearby family members who can help and are not in a high-risk population. If there are no family members nearby, you can ask friends that might be willing to help. Lastly, if neither of those are an option, a hospital can usually advise you on community resources for families in crisis."
They Are In Survival Mode
There are a lot of things that parents, especially those who are single, have to go through when they are raising their kids, and some of those things can be particularly challenging. But in recent times, that has become even more true because of COVID-19. The pandemic has made things harder on a lot of people, but it seems that single parents are really facing a lot of struggles. For example, single parents need to realize that they are in survival mode, according to childmind.org. But, it has also been hard on those who are expecting babies.
They're Having To Pull Double Duty
Single parents are used to playing the roles of both mom and dad, but the pandemic has forced them to start playing another role on top of all that they already have to do. In addition to working at their jobs and doing what they already had to do to raise their little ones, they are also having to play the role of teacher. While this might not be hard for parents who are already used to it due to having already chosen to homeschool their kids, it can be challenging for those who did not expect to do it.
Parents Are Concerned For Their Jobs
The pandemic has been tough on a lot of people, and one of the reasons why that is true is because it has cost many men and women their jobs. This kind of thing is hard on anyone, but it is even more difficult for single parents. Even those who are now working from home tend to worry about things like this happening to them. But lots of bosses are very understanding these days, and some single parents might be able to talk to their bosses about taking some time off to do things they have to do for their families.
Things Are A Bit Noisy
There are a lot of issues that might arise if one has to work at home while caring for a child or children on their own. There are many reasons why this is true, but one of them is that kids usually make a lot of noise.
This is fine and to be expected, but it can be hard for a single parent who is trying to work and support their family financially. Perhaps investing noise-cancelling headphones would work for people in this scenario, as long as they check on their kids frequently to ensure that they have not gotten into any trouble.
S0me Still Have To Leave Home
While some single parents have to deal with working from home while caring for their kids at the same time, others still have to leave their homes. That is because many of them still have to leave home to go to their essential jobs. According to discoversociety.org, this causes some single parents to have to search for people to look after their kids while they are away, which is tough during a pandemic.
They Should Stay Calm
Single parents have to be responsible when it comes to their duties at home, as well as the duties they have to do in order to keep their jobs, according to nature.com. They have to ensure that their kids are taken care of, and also that they have done all of the tasks they need to do in order to keep their jobs. As hard as this might sound, it’s important that parents keep calm during times like this. They should also take one thing at a time.
Sources: Pillar, Child Mind Institute, Discover Society, Nature