{"id":1999,"date":"2016-06-06T16:11:12","date_gmt":"2016-06-06T16:11:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/?p=1999"},"modified":"2024-05-09T03:33:10","modified_gmt":"2024-05-09T03:33:10","slug":"life-as-a-single-parent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/life-as-a-single-parent\/","title":{"rendered":"Life as a Single Parent"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Being a single parent is not easy; it has its own set of challenges.<\/p>\n<p>Couples get together with the very best of intentions, full of hopes and dreams of white picket fences, 2.5 kids.<\/p>\n<p>No one enters into a committed relationship with the intention of uncoupling. Nonetheless, it\u2019s a distressingly common occurrence.<\/p>\n<p>Suddenly, you find yourself a single parent. Even if you have always been an active, involved parent, this is a completely different experience.<\/p>\n<p>In the best of situations, with a support team of grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, friends, etc. you may have bouts of frustration and fatigue.<\/p>\n<p>During these times you will have to push through and step-up. There is no substitution for a parent when dealing with a crying toddler, grumpy daughter or a son who failed to make the last out. These are hurdles you and your children will have to scale together.<\/p>\n<p>Some of the most common ways a single parent can cope with and reduce stress are:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Finding a balance \u2013 Remember that parenting is about the moment. Take a deep breath and let go of your expectations.<\/li>\n<li>Show your love \u2013Praise your child. Give him or her unconditional love and support.<\/li>\n<li>Create a routine \u2013 Structure, such as regularly scheduled meals and bedtimes help your child know what to expect.<\/li>\n<li>Find quality child care \u2013 If you need regular child care, look for a qualified caregiver who can provide a safe environment. Do not rely on an older child as your only babysitter and be careful about asking a new friend or partner to watch your child.<\/li>\n<li>Set limits \u2013 Explain house rules and expectations to your child, such as speaking respectfully and enforce them.<\/li>\n<li>Don\u2019t give in to guilt \u2013 Don\u2019t blame yourself or spoil your child to try to make up for being a single parent.<\/li>\n<li>Make time for yourself \u2013 Include physical activity in your daily routine, eat a healthy diet and get plenty of sleep. Make time to enjoy alone time or activities with close friends.<\/li>\n<li>Lean on others \u2013 It\u2019s okay to join a support group for single parents or seek social services. Call on trusted loved ones, friends and neighbors for help.<\/li>\n<li>Stay positive \u2013 Be honest with your child if you\u2019re having a difficult time, but remind him or her that things will get better. Try to keep your sense of humor when dealing with everyday challenges.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Mistakes may be made, but with love and the best of intentions, you\u2019ll make it through.<\/p>\n<p class=\"disclaimer\">All content of this newsletter is intended for general information purposes only and is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.  Please consult a medical professional before adopting any of the suggestions on this page.   You must never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking medical treatment based upon any content of this newsletter.<strong>  PROMPTLY CONSULT YOUR PHYSICIAN OR CALL 911 IF YOU BELIEVE YOU HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY.<\/strong> <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Being a single parent is not easy; it has its own set of challenges. Couples get together with the very best of intentions, full of hopes and dreams of white picket fences, 2.5 kids. No one enters into a committed &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/life-as-a-single-parent\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,14,474,617,4],"tags":[692,691,690,618,689],"class_list":["post-1999","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-health","category-mens-health","category-mental-health","category-parenting","category-womens-health","tag-creatingaroutine","tag-findingbalance","tag-juggling","tag-parenting","tag-singleparent"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1999","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1999"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1999\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8833,"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1999\/revisions\/8833"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1999"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1999"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flushinghospital.org\/newsletter\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1999"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}