Positive and Negative Effects of Single Parenting Being a parent is hard enough, but being a single parent is just a double kill. It is twice the work, plus the stress, minus the free time, divide the tasks, and this equals zero sleep, zero social life, negative one love life, and non-stop worries, nonstop bills, and problems. There are two sides of the same coin. In the same way, being a single parent does have its own perks. First, there will be a great parent-child relationship. You realize your importance as a parent and the child leans to you more as you are constantly present in their lives of your child. Second, the value of contributions is especially seen in the sharing of responsibilities between parent and child. Children have to contribute through a token of responsibilities in the absence of the parent. This makes the children grow in maturity faster compared to other children because they see their parents working hard and constantly collaborate with then at a young age. They also learn to handle disappointments when their parent is not present. It is indeed a difficult life. The downside of being a single parent is what one always notices whether it be the feeling of loneliness and financial problems of the parent, or the self-esteem problems, the feeling of shame, the tinge of resentment, and the continuous sense of loss a child often deals with all the time. In school, parent participation activities are always difficult to deal with especially if the single parent constantly cannot attend because they are too busy being the breadwinner of the family. The child downs in disappointment. They feel neglected, ashamed, and rejected by their own parents. It starts to build a growing resentment within the child towards their parents. Instead of looking for the acceptance they want from their parents, they look towards their fellow peers. They succumb into various vices like smoking, drinking, and doing drugs to garner the attention and approval of their friends. They constantly get into fights. In the absence of their parents, children drown themselves in the technological advancements of the world. They play video games, drown themselves in social media posts with all the likes, followers, and shares in order to feel less alone. They did not choose this kind of life yet they are forced to live under these circumstances- forsaken, shunned, and depressed. Parents usually experience an identity crisis. It was like suddenly, you do not even know yourself anymore. You were on the top of your world at the top of your game with your dream job you had wanted for years and just suddenly, you were suddenly thrown into a world of diapers, pacifiers, and hospitals. It was like your dream life has been snatched away from you plus a child in your arms. People look at you differently. People treat you differently. More and more jobs are piled up on your plate. Your schedules are full but you still feel empty, lacking. And this is what you deal with, you tend to lose yourself. This is what these people have to suffer with every day. They have so much problems they have to deal with. Society does not even help with all these standards of a perfect family like the happy couple (which they obviously cannot have) and the straight- A, sporty, respectful, responsible, and diligent child (which is difficult with the numerous responsibilities) with the perfect house and lawn with the dog. But despite all the problems, insecurities, and struggles, the parent and the child find solace in each other’s presence and lean towards each other. They depend on each other in times of crisis and they know that one would be there for the other. Though it will be difficult to feel at times because of the numerous jobs the parent has, they will be able to surpass this and when they do, they forge an even
stronger bond. Even if society will judge them, this will not become a barrier but a means to grow closer to each other. Because in the end, it will always just be them against the whole world. And for them, there is no problem with that.