Single Parent Advice on Effects of Single Parenting

You are the one that is solely responsible for everything your child may need. You might have been getting help from your ex husband or wife in case he or she is in the picture even after getting divorced in the form of joint custody, shared custody, or financial support. However, even with help from an ex spouse, it is important to understand the possible effects of single parenting on your child.

These results are only statistics, so it is likely that your kid will not run into these effects of single parenting. Understanding about what you are really dealing with is the top priority

Psychological Considerations

Your child's mental health is important in regards to the effects of single parenting. Divorce can cause feelings of self blame in children, as they may wonder whether or not they were the cause. For a child, this can be devastating. Not knowing your mother or father and only having one parent in your household as a child can be equally disrupting to normal life. With no contact from the other parent the child may be inclined to wonder about certain things such as if they are still living or their reasoning for leaving them. Your child may still feel abandoned, despite your reassurance that they are not. Searching for an absent parent is likely for a single parent child and may usually lead to them wanting to have a relationship with the absent parent. Regardless of the feelings your child displays, ensure that you are aware of them, remain close and attempt to understand those feelings, and when needed that a psychologist is involved to assist in dealing with the feelings.

Educational Facets

Education is vital. Children who go through any trauma tend to see a sink in grades in the immediate future, however. If one of his or her parents moves out and the household is suddenly a single parent one, the child may feel dejected. The lost feeling your child is suffering may also affect their grades. Its always gonna be a worse effect when single parenting happens suddenly Although teachers may cut some slack to the child that is going through a tough time, you should communicate to the teacher that this is not what you want. A snowball effect will inevitably follow. Just a few weeks away from school can set your child back for the whole year and this can have repercussions for the rest of his school years. You should communicate with teachers in order to know how your child is performing in school and to ensure that they do not fall through the cracks.

Claim your free book on parenting and find out more about getting financial help by visiting single parent grants

Can You Be Single Yet Happy? Dating Tips & Advice

Do these words "Single and happy" sound like a bit of a paradox to you? Are you of the opinion that singles can not be happy? Are you postponing decisions in life only with the by-line, after I am married and settled?

Do you often feel that fun and enjoyment in life can not be fully appreciated unless you have someone to share it with? And do you always think that there is never enough time and monetary resources for a single person, to pursue any experience which bring true happiness ?

If these are your inner gut feel, not to lose hope. Go through the following tips to appreciate your present status in a different perspective. It is possible, through a lot of behavioral changes. The tips highlight how to lead a carefree, fun-filled and balanced existence as a single person, which in turn also paves the path for you to achieve a nice, healthy long-term relationship in future.

1. Seek self-fulfillment as an individual.

Concentrate on yourself first. Focus on the things that bring you joy and fulfillment. Be it a hobby or people, do whatever makes you happy. Don't let peace and enjoyment elude you as you wait eternally to share a good movie or a beautiful scenery with your future partner.

2. Don't put off important life decisions while waiting for that special someone.

Take life as it comes. Take appropriate decisions when the time is relevant according to you. For instance owning a house. Go ahead and do it. Hardly matters if it is too small in future. You can take a further decision to sell or rent that house. But right now it suffices your immediate needs and helps you invest in something which brings safety and security.

Also comes with tax benefits. If you decide to change cities, change jobs, go back to studies - do it by all means. Just might need a bit of re-shuffling your priorities but delaying such decisions can permanently switch off a plan, if you wait for a partner to arrive and settle down first. Time waits for none. Don't put your life on hold for anyone, that also yet unseen and unmet. Instead, work towards achieving your goals with determination and a sense of purpose.

3. Pamper yourself

Do some indulgence every now and then. It keeps you happy and alive. Like taking a holiday to an exotic island which you always wanted. Of course, you can repeat the exercise with the special someone later.

Do things which a couple would do normally. Live in style, for your self. Use good looking china at the dinner table, light that romantic candle and put on your favorite song while you munch alone. You deserve these small but important things to yourself.

Make your home beautiful. You will feel like returning to it everyday. You can easily do this without having to spend a fortune. Make it as cozy as possible - a dream retreat. You and your mate can re-decorate it once you establish a life together.

4. Make a plan, not excuses

Plan and organize your life. Don't give so much importance and priority to your job that it seems you are married to it. Set time schedules for each activity and work according to priority. We often hold our job as the most popular excuse for us not being able to do anything else in life - things which befit our other needs and desires.

You think ignoring your job means not going up the corporate ladder or slowing down. But remember the most important thing is to bring a sense of balance in life. Because lack of it affects your mental, emotional, spiritual and leisure of life. A workaholic is someone you may meet, but never be one.

5. Write down your must haves.

Stop that mad rush all the time. Learn to relax and take it easy and unwind. It helps with your mental health. Keep a score card how you're doing and make necessary adjustments. Stop being a couch potato, delete TV from your life once in a while. Instead, read a good stimulating book, reflect and look inwards to get peace and tranquility.

You have just started to turn a new leaf in life. Let this spring bring a long-lasting spring to your life. After all, this earth is our earth - this time is our time. Make full use of what you have already and see all the beautiful things Mother Nature has to offer in bountiful. And lastly, don't let the spirit of life dampen, for this is the only permanent thing we have with us. Irrespective of our relationshipstatus.

Joshua Goh is dating & relationship expert. His desire is to motivate and support single men, women and couples to overcome the obstacles preventing them from attaining the loving relationships and lives they really want. For more information please visit our site for up-to-date free personals reviews and practical online dating tips & ideas.

Singles - A New Mental Health "Diagnosis" of Self Blame For Single Women

One of the biggest health risks for always single women in their 30s and 40s is Self Blame. Research shows that women are more prone to blaming themselves while men are more likely to project blame onto others. So, if you are thinking about a relationship, what you have is both the man and the woman blaming the woman!

As a family therapist for 38 years, university professor, and author of several books on single women, I see the destructive fall-out from women blaming themselves for not being married. In one of my studies, when the women were asked if they were single by choice, almost exactly half said yes, leaving the other half saying no. Yet, when asked to explain their response, they all basically said the same thing: they were single by choice because they did not like their choices in the men they were meeting.

The problem is not just that too many men are not willing to make the commitment to marriage. It's too many men are not willing to make the commitment to do what it takes to have a healthy relationship.

And, what is that? It's two people willing to talk about issues as they come up, addressing, together, potential problems - before they become big problems. Anyone can be loving; but learning to deal productively with relationship problems is the most challenging aspect of relationships. Women have been socialized to be the caretaker of relationships, to be on guard for potential problems and resolve them before they become serious. They may not do it well, but they make the effort.

Unfortunately, men are socialized with a different mandate, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." So, too few men are skilled or willing to learn how to work through issues that strengthen a relationship.

Thus, there are more single women then men ready for a healthy relationship. And they are less willing to be with a man who isn't. Without understand, too many women assume if they are not meeting a man they want to be with, it must be their fault, there must be something wrong with them.

And, the worse thing is that even when women understand that men are not carrying their share of relationships, too many of them still come back to blaming themselves. As Sara, a woman in my study said, "I'd rather think the problem is me; then I can do something about it." This self blame is what makes the upcoming documentary, Seeking Happily Ever After (seekinghappilyeverafter.com) so poignant. Producers Kerry David, of L.A. and Michelle Cover, of Boston, go beneath the bubbly surface of Sex and the City, talking to hundreds of single women. They are fleshing out a fuller picture of the 30 something single women and asking if women are living their "happily ever after" or someone else's.

One hopeful benefit to this documentary will be the decrease of the overwhelming mental health diagnosis for so many single women, the diagnosis of ...Self Blame.

To help you assess about how much self blame you carry, get my free gift of "15 Golden Rules for Being An Emotionally Healthy Single" at http://www.DrKGL.com/rules

And, be sure to check on the weekend retreats I run for Single Women at http://www.UniqueRetreatsForSingleWomen.com

Dr. Karen Gail Lewis, The Woman Who Helps Women And The People They Love