Single-Parent Family Issues
As divorce becomes more prominent in society, so does the single-parent family. Despite the best intentions of the single parent, maintaining a healthy family unit without a partner's help is a difficult task. The experience can negatively affect the parent and children, but this does not mean a single parent is unable to raise well-adjusted children.
Other People Are Reading
-
Financial Difficulties
-
In some cases, it may be difficult for a single parent to support a family on their job alone. This can put undue strain on the parents and the children. Some single parents may even need to take two jobs in order to afford the necessities of their family. This is by no means a requirement for a single-parent family. There are single parents with a steady job that earn a comfortable amount of money.
An Overworked Parent
-
As a parent, you may love your children dearly, but this does not mean you can stand to be in parent mode ever spare second of the day. Single parents often have to switch between work mode and parent mode everyday without any reprieve. In a traditional family unit, a parent could relax while her spouse watched over the children. Unfortunately, in a single-parent household, there is rarely anyone available that will help shoulder the burden of child rearing. This can lead to a stressful situation for the parent.
-
Poorly Supervised Children
-
In some cases, a single parent has to struggle to provide food for their family. This can put the children of the family in a difficult situation as far as supervision. If a parent is already struggling to feed their family, their financial strain may intensify with the need of a babysitter. If a parent cannot afford a babysitter, their children may go long periods without parental supervision. The lack of supervision increases the chance that the child will fall into delinquent behavior, such as skipping school and drug use.
Quickly Aging Children
-
Even without meaning to, some parents may put an undue strain on their children in a single-parent family. For example, in a case study completed by Robert Krell, an author for the "Canadian Medical Association Journal," a woman the journal referred to as Mrs. B. realized she was setting her ex-husband's responsibilities on her six-year-old son. This led her son to become antisocial with children in his age bracket and hostile towards her male companions.
-
