I don’t know about you, but I’ve had a pretty shit day. I know, without a shadow of a doubt, a lot of you will have had a worse one. These are strange and unprecedented times. Dark, scary and unsettling times. As a single mum, the thought of further isolation is hard, as we are advised to spend more and more time inside, away from others. But the alternative, of putting those we love, and vulnerable people in our communities, at risk, is far worse. This is, without question, the hardest thing we have lived through as a community. But, as always, this too shall pass.
If you’re a single mum reading this and feeling bleak, know you are not alone.
If you are a single parent and have lost your job and don’t know if you will lose your home, know you are not alone.
If you are wondering how the hell you will get your kids to their other parent as our freedom becomes more restricted, know you are not alone.
If you thought you had finally, just finally, got it all together and were staying afloat in your little family, only to have your life raft pulled from under you, know you are not alone.
If you are worrying about how you will survive without the regular contact and support of your vulnerable older relatives from whom you’ll need to stay distant from for the foreseeable, know you are not alone.
If you are trying to stay positive, but finding it harder and harder, know that you are not alone.
Even if you have to self-isolate, try not to self-isolate. Find your connections in your friends and family online. Do not cut yourself off. Use Facetime. Use Instagram. Use your phone the old-fashioned way, to make calls. Join Frolo and find your tribe.
Take a bath, read a book, watch Clueless on Netflix because god knows we need the nostalgia of 90s romcoms right now.
And most importantly, hold your little one close. Make this difficult time the time you thrive, to show your child just how strong they make you. Make this a time they will treasure, because they get to see more of their favourite person. Hold them close and be strong for them, yes, but let them give you strength, too.
This too shall pass.