“Being a single parent is twice the work, twice the stress and twice the tears; but also twice the hugs, twice the love and twice the pride.” -Unknown

Single moms are 40% more likely to have heart problems and 74% more likely to have a stroke. 80% of single mothers suffer from loneliness. 72% of single mothers report a lack of confidence in their abilities to handle challenging situations. 46% of single mothers attest to feeling as though their lives are no longer meaningful. 40% of single mothers report being unbalanced with their emotions including frequent feelings of irritability. Single mothers are also the type of adults most likely to be lacking proper amounts of sleep.

Being a single mother is hard. Often times you may feel alone and overwhelmed. Studies continue to demonstrate the short and long term effects on health and self-esteem as a result of the challenges managing this role entails.

A study researching the implications of divorce on women suggests that in comparison to married women, divorced women are significantly more susceptible to chronic illness and poor psychological health. This conclusion was drawn as a result of the greater number of stressful events divorced women face including social, emotional and economic hardships.

The majority of single moms report feeling lonely, helpless and hopeless, attesting to lack of confidence in themselves and who they are as a person. The majority of single mothers also maintain higher levels of depression as well as poor eating habits.

These days, the ways in which a single-parent family is created are numerous, including the death of one parent, divorce, separation, and desertion. You might even be in a marriage or relationship and simply FEEL as though you are a single parent as a result of a lack of proper support from your partner. But you are not alone. Feelings of guilt, shame, resentment, anger and anxiety about the future are NORMAL and have been shown to result in changes in the woman’s personality if not addressed and treated.

The good news is that there is hope for single mothers.  There are support groups and organizations that you can reach out to in Pittsburgh to help you with coping skills and support

Many times though it helps to have the undivided attention of a professional like me to help you with support and options for coping.  Contact me today if you are seeking assistance with coping skill identification, stress management techniques and to begin feeling more confident and empowered.

Sources: Problems Faced by Single mothers (Kotwal & Prabhakar, 2009)

Image Credit Adobe Stock