Single & Solo Parent Support: A collaboration with Dr. Monica Krishnan, PharmD

Are you a single / solo parent that is in need of support?

In 2021, there were approximately 15.6 million children living with a single mother in the United States, and about 3.6 million children living with a single father.* It’s clear that single & solo parent households are becoming more prevalent in this country—- why are we not adapting socially to meet the needs of these seismic household shifts?

Today I am collaborating with Dr. Monica Krishnan, PharmD who is one of my favorite collaborators from Instagram. I’ve collaborated with Dr. Monica in the past on “the invisible workload performed by pharmacy staff” which emphasizes the often unseen labor pharmacy staff perform on a routine basis. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts and blogs, burnout is a hot topic but it’s not a trend. In order to attack it from multiple angles, we (the burnout specialists) have to highlight & define the “invisible” workload and gaps in resources / support to make any sort of enduring, substantial changes.

Dr. Monica, a solo parent, had some thoughts on her own experience that she wanted to share with Parent Suitcase.

“Solo parenting is not easy as it comes with many challenges. It also comes with a beautiful opportunity to grow as a person, and over time I have learned that I am the perfect parent for my two beautiful daughters. Remind yourself by looking in the mirror and say out loud you are a rockstar and you are doing the best you can! Remember you are doing twice the work so pat yourself on the back daily!”- Dr. Monica

The United States has the world’s highest rate of single parent households and they are less likely to live with extended family**. How can we as a community maximize the resources that single & solo parents have while also advocating for additional resources to be readily available in both work & home atmospheres? Here are our Top 8 tools & tips following by some valuable links to other single & solo parent resources….

1) Build your support system/ community: Who provides you external support? You community may be comprised of local friends, family members, parent groups, mentors, etc. When you are cultivating your own social safety net, take into consideration level of trust, reliability, and parental competitiveness. The goal is to feel secure in your exchanges vs. competing for the “Best Parent Award”. I have shared some other in-depth information on how you can do this in previous posts on Parent Suitcase

2) Ask for help - don’t be afraid to ask for support, you deserve help: Support comes in many forms- mental health support, physical support, household task support, etc. Solo parents bear a massive responsibility to their families; for many single & solo parents, working part-time / full-time / double shifts to remain (or achieve) financial security is a reality. Address household tasks in an age-appropriate manner and create a flexible household action plan so that the lion’s share of the workload doesn’t fall onto one person’s shoulders. For mental health support, seek out health-related advice from your healthcare team if you are feeling like you need some additional professional guidance.

3) Developing a mindfulness practice: This one came highly recommended by Dr. Monica as a solo parent working frontline in the midst of a pändem1c. According to Jon Kabat-Zinn, the 7 Key Attitudes of Mindfulness are: not-judging, patience, holding a beginner’s mind / open & curious, trust, not striving / present moment focus, acceptance, and letting go.*** We both love Dr. Gandhi and her sessions on IGLive and IGTV: Ruminations on Gratitude

4) Self-care essentials: Dr. Monica’s Self Care Tool Box: exercise, therapy, meditation, nature walks, scheduling joy, listening to inspirational podcasts, maintaining a gratitude practice (Dr. Gandhi’s practice), finding your tribe of women, or trying a new hobby.

5) Build a network with other parents for additional support: setting up a reliable carpooling schedule / backup transportation, offering occasional backup sitter care, opportunities for social connection.

6) Schedule “me time“ daily: even if it’s 5-15 min/day! Self-investment is a key component in maintaining overall optimal health & wellbeing. Whether you decide that those 5-15 minutes are spent on nothingness or they are best spent painting, use that opportunity to give back to yourself. Before you became a parent, you had hobbies, interests, and needs that needed to be met. As a parent, the same applies, even if it takes some sifting through weighted layers of responsibilities and never-ending, scrolling daily task lists.

7) Feel all your emotions- some days are harder than others! That “not-judging” attitude that Kabat-Zinn mentioned…

8) Seek mental health supported if needed: I mention this EVERYWHERE and Dr. Monica stands firm on this, too. If you are feeling too overwhelmed or need some additional coping strategies to manage your daily life, there is no shame in seeking out additional mental health support. There are so many providers that are championing this now on social media- mental health is a component of our overall health and both are uniquely intertwined.

And now for some additional single & solo parent resources:

Single Parent Advocate: visit their website to see how single families can find healing and hope
The Single Parent Project: dedicated to providing financial relief and other resources
A Single Mother: Grants for Single Moms: a collection of all grants available to U.S. single moms and other resources
Single Mother Guide: a breakdown of grants and their amounts by state and living situation
Parents Without Partners: single parent support group for all single parents & their children

Without ample support systems in place, single & solo parenthood can feel overwhelming. “Special stress for single parents often arises from a critical economic situation, little social support and the increased demands arising from the child’s sole care and upbringing. Also, single parents more often fear that they have too little time for their children and their education.”****

Gather your practical resources here and share your own favorites below with us! We are so grateful that you are spending your valuable time reading this collaborative blog and can’t wait to hear from you.

Follow @parentsuitcase and @drmonicapharmd for more content that can help you live a more supported, resourced life. Join us on our platforms as we provide practical, real world resources and support for all families and stay tuned for more on this topic!

Request a “Parent Suitcase” topic by DM here!

Sources:

*https://www.statista.com/statistics/252847/number-of-children-living-with-a-single-mother-or-single-father/

**https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/12/12/u-s-children-more-likely-than-children-in-other-countries-to-live-with-just-one-parent/

***https://www.sc.edu/about/offices_and_divisions/housing/documents/resiliencyproject/7keyattitudesofmindfulness.pdf

****Sartor, T., Lange, S., & Tröster, H. (2022). Cumulative Stress of Single Mothers - An Exploration of Potential Risk Factors. *The Family Journal*, *0*(0).

Disclaimer: The information on this platform is not intended or implied to be a substitute for personal professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. All platform content including text, graphics, images, and information is for general information purposes only & does not replace clinical consultation with your own doctor/mental health professional.