Being a parent is hard enough but things just get harder when you don’t have another person to help you out. Children, no matter how amazing they make our lives, are huge responsibilities.
You are raising a whole other human being that needs you from everything like wiping their nose to learning valuable life lessons. Often, for most single parents this means completely forgetting about their own lives.
Though it seems noble and responsible, it can actually be extremely bad for your mental health. You are your own person even if you are a single parent.
It’s not about giving up your life for your kid. It’s about finding the perfect balance which lets you be a responsible parent and still have your own interests and hobbies. Here are five ways a single parent can balance life.
1. Create a Routine
Life as a single dad is already chaos, so a bit of routine would do you some good. This way, you’ll know exactly what to expect, when certain things are done, and how much free time you have during the day.
There are simply no surprises. This is especially important if your kid is young and just getting accustomed to going to school and doing things around the house.
A routine will help both of you stay sane while you complete the daily obligations you have. You should devise a schedule for each day you’ll follow. Sit down and come up with this schedule with your kid.
They should be involved in it too so they know when they can count on you and what they can expect during the day. Not only does this make the kid more confident and independent, but it also teaches them how to organize their time better.
Simply hang the new routine on the fridge and you’ll avoid all future misunderstandings and chaos.
2. Budget, Budget, Budget
No matter how much we save, it seems it’s never enough. Taking care of your finances is even more important when you’re a single income family. Your kid depends on you entirely, meaning you have to be very responsible about your spending habits.
One good idea to save some money while still living a normal life is to have a budget for everything. The best way to do this is to sit down and figure out your budget for each month.
Don’t do this alone though, involve your kid in the parts which are relevant to them. Explain to them you have an X amount of money to spend on toys, new clothes, and allowance.
Tell them the rest needs to be saved or put towards improving the house, for example. This way, your kid is bound to understand your position more. As well as that, the spending limits will be clearly set.
They’ll know how much they can ask of you and they’ll even start picking up how to manage their wishes according to the number of available funds in the house.
3. Figure out what your Work Values
Not many of us are lucky to work in the perfect environment where we’re appreciated, valued, and compensated fairly for the work we put in. Still, most of us can find offices where a healthy life and work balance is encouraged.
In other words, find a job where you won’t have to bring your work home. Once you clock out, you’re no longer at the office physically or mentally.
Your boss and colleagues shouldn’t call you on your work phone after working hours and you shouldn’t even leave that phone on.
Work that lets you have a life outside of it is the kind of work a single parent needs. That way, once the working hours are over, you have all the time in the world to devote to your kid.
You’ll have the time to pick them up from school, take them out for ice cream, and just talk to them. As well as that, your quality time together won’t be interrupted by work.
This shows your kid you’re present, pay attention to their life, and you love them. It also gives you a much-needed mental break from work and allows you to recharge your batteries for the next working day.
4. Find Time to Relax
Stress just accumulates and eats you out if you don’t deal with it. This is especially true when you’re a single dad who doesn’t have anyone to share the stress with.
You have a job and you constantly take care of your kid. Both of these things involve a lot of planning, worrying, running around, and a lot of responsibility. This is why finding time to relax is necessary.
Whether it’s taking a walk by yourself in the evening or reading a good book, it’s bound to do you a world of good. You could also take up a sport if you’re an active person, or even go to the gym.
Investing in the best neck and shoulder massager you can find is also one excellent way to relax after a long day. All of these activities relax your muscles and release the tension you’ve been holding in all this time.
You don’t even realize how tense you are until all of that tension leaves your body. Your relaxation time can happen at any time during the day.
If your kid is at sports practice or in school, it means you have some free time to devote to yourself. Sometimes you could even arrange a play date for them and use those two hours to just relax.
You’ll be more patient, more understanding, and much happier.
6. Assign some Chores
It seems the house is always dirty when you simply don’t have enough time to clean it. On top of that, your kid just seems to make a mess wherever they go. You can fix this problem easily if you assign them chores.
No matter how young they are, they need to realize this is their house too and they have to participate in keeping it clean.
Teaching your kid to clean up starts from a young age. When they’re little, it’s cleaning up their toys. As they grow, the chores get more complicated but enough for them to handle.
Whatever their age, they can at least clean up after themselves. It wouldn’t kill them to wash the dishes they were using and clear the table after eating, but it will contribute to the cleanness of the household a lot.
If your kid doesn’t seem to have any interest in chores (like most kids aren’t) you can try making a game out of it. Clean the house together but make it a competition or introduce some challenges they have to complete while they’re cleaning. As well as that, you could always blast some music, sing, and dance while you clean.
As you can see, being a single parent doesn’t have to take your whole life away. Your child could still be the center of your world even if you do make time for yourself.
In fact, being a happy and successful parent means you take care of yourself as much as you take care of your kid. Balancing your life to fit in your child, your job, and yourself in it is not going to be an easy task.
We’re confident you’ll manage just fine with the tips provided above, though. The debt level for single parents is significantly higher. Here’s a guide to debt elimination for single parents.
