This is my story of when co-parenting fails. Two years after separating, it seems almost comical now how naive my initial expectations of co-parenting were. At the start I believed those advice pieces about the importance of creating a strong co-parenting relationship. I thought that the first time my son had a 40+ temperature his dad would…
Single Motherhood
When Your Husband Suffers Psychosis
Trigger warning – this post talks in detail about psychosis and mental health. It may be upsetting for people who have experienced psychosis or seen others suffer. The blogs I have read on mental illness tend to be clean and tidy. The moral is clear – goodness wins out in the end. I can only assume that an unspoken,…
The Good Times
I have written a lot about the challenges of motherhood – single motherhood especially. As I put up posts like missing in action and this shit just got real, I worry that should I, or my son, (or really anyone) look back on this blog in years to come and think that this is the whole…
My Depression Diagnosis: Getting Help In Real Time
Six weeks ago I received a depression diagnosis, signed off work and given a prescription for prozac. This is my story so far. The first few days Last night I took the pill. Washed it back with a glass of water. Three seconds later I was panicking. Freaking out. Losing it. I texted a friend, confirmed I was just…
The Benefits Of Being Raised By A Single Mum
Did you know there are benefits of being raised by a single mum? If you’ve ever googled ‘single mums’ you’d never know it. It makes for depressing reading. The articles written by religious zealots don’t surprise me. What’s more shocking are those articles claiming to be based on research and the opinion pieces in well known publications. Even my limited…
Keeping Mum: Why Do We Shush Mums?
It’s a strange thing isn’t it? That mum means, well, to be a mum, but to keep mum means being silent. How does that work? Mums are supposed to be silent? Granted, the origins of the two ‘mums’ are different, but it seems like a pretty neat coincident considering mums are being shushed wherever we go.…
My Drug
Though you leave, there is no reprieve, From the ties that bind us. The craving waiting to wash over me. The relief your presence brings, But brief respite from a hunger I cannot suppress. The part of my story, That brings me sweet, sweet glory Even on the hazy days. Awaiting your return, I cannot…
My Response To Mayim Bialik on Divorce
As a divorced single mum, I make a bee-line for any blogs or vlogs out there that talk about single parenting and divorce from a mums perspective. Recently one of Mayim Bialik’s vlogs has been doing the rounds. It’s a piece about divorce, and how she co-parents with her ex. Now, I think it’s great…
My Divorce Is a Sign of Strength
If we don’t know personally, then we’ve surely all heard how marriage is hard work, especially once children enter the mix. There are so many posts about it; beautiful ones about the struggles and joys of married life,* and others which, quite frankly, border on the offensive – emphasising how nowadays people aren’t cut out for the hard work…
Depression: This Shit Just Got Real
I went to the doctor’s today. Told them I wasn’t coping. Suddenly everything feels very real. “Depression” was bandied around. I haven’t been coping for the last three years, so it’s not like it’s a new thing. But I’ve had to cope, had to carry on regardless. I haven’t been allowed to stop and breath…