Navigating Single Mum-hood

alisonkathrynlee - 13 Jan 19

Daughter, sister, friend, teacher and single Mum. The latter is the title I never thought I’d hold. As a teen, the plan was different. Find man. Marry man. Have children. Live happily ever after. The Disney dream. However, the reality is much different.

I became a single Mum one month after birth. The start of my journey of being Mummy hadn’t started as I had planned, and I retreated to the sanctuary of my parents home.

Trying to be mum when you have to fit into everyone else’s schedules is hard. You cant put the washing on when you’d like, you’re more conscious of baby crying in the night and trying not to wake the house up and you can’t leave baby’s things lying around everywhere.

It was a tough few months, but having my parents and sister right there for moral and physical support was amazing. They didn’t interfere unless I asked and having dinner cooked for you is a privilege I can’t explain. They supported me through the sleepless nights, the sick, the nappy explosions, the screaming hab-dabs.

I went back to work six months earlier than I had planned, cutting my time with my baby short and forcing me to stop breastfeeding, something that I still miss dearly. Fortunately the school I teach in were able to accommodate my need for work.

Fast forward eight months, and things are looking up. We have a home, I work three days a week, we have our own routine. His father is involved and I miss my boy so much when he is with him. Baby is the happiest little boy I know, and I feel strong, so very strong. I have amazed myself with the ability to power on, because there is a little human to look after, there is no time to fall to pieces.

The circumstances are not what I had planned for myself or for my little boy but we are making it work. As long as he is happy, then that is all that matters.

Everything happens for a reason.

alisonkathrynlee

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