I’ve been a single mother for over two years now and I think I’ve learned a few things. I’ve learned that single motherhood comes with a stigma and within that stigma there is a hierarchy. There is a hierarchy of single mothers. Before I start, I want you to know that I don’t believe in any of these stereotypes. Below are my reflections on how, in my experience, single mothers are perceived in society. This is not how I want…
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This is the rush hour of our lives. We have children who need our focus and attention. We have careers that need our energy, initiative and drive to really take off. We have social commitments aplenty (hen and stag dos, weddings, divorce parties!) and we have the constant background hum of admin, chores, bills, mortgages and appointments. I feel as though I am driving at high speed in the fast lane of the motorway. All I really want to do…
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Let me share some intimate truths. Pregnancy and child birth left me with piles. I fart more often. After a three course meal, I look like I am three months pregnant again because my stomach muscles aren’t what they were before I carried a baby. I am pleased to say that my pelvic floor is still in very good shape. I can happily bounce around on a trampoline and keep all of my urine in my body. That’s an achievement. …
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I have been reading, watching and listening to a lot about mental health issues recently. I read Bryony Gordon’s Mad Girl in which she talks about her OCD, her depression, her bulimia and her anxiety. Her style of writing is incredibly comical and it is not until you put the book down that you pause to consider the crippling effects of mental health issues. Bryony Gordon describes her relationship with a violent boyfriend and how her low self-esteem, caused by…
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I’ve been feeling frazzled lately. What with a work/childcare schedule with no give or flexibility in it, a busy full time job and a whole heap of other things weighing on my mind there have been a few occasions recently when I have felt that it is all just too much. I have been feeling frazzled and needed to treat myself. Co-parenting, for all its drawbacks and believe me there are many, does give me the occasional time out. This weekend…
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It was a cold Sunday afternoon in January over two years ago when my ex and I first discussed separation. Things were bad. He taunted me. “What about Cygnet? You don’t want Cygnet to come from a broken home.” My ex didn’t believe that I would have the courage to leave, and after googling “broken home” that night, I nearly didn’t. Broken home children are ‘five times more likely to suffer mental troubles’ said the Daily Mail Children from broken…
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When I ditched the dating apps at the beginning of the year, I told myself that I would have three months off and then I would re-open some of my accounts, potentially explore some different apps and start swiping again. Oh, the delights of dating like a millennial! Now that these three months are up, I am just not sure I can be bothered. Online dating apps are so bloody boring, conversations can be so tedious, meeting these guys…
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I love a good podcast. In fact podcasts have recently become a bit of an addiction. I look forward to my daily Podcast binge. Whilst standing on a stuffy train on my commute to work Podcasts enable me to zone out and imagine that I am somewhere else and in conversation with some really interesting people. I’m always on the look out for new and interesting podcasts and I’d love to hear your recommendations. Here, in no particular order, are…
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There are some curious goings on in the garages at the back of my flat. I like to keep an eye on what goes on in my block of flats. I have told you about the wheelie-suitcase-wielding spinster who lives in the flat beneath me. I think I also told you about the sexy guy who helped me carry the buggy down the stairs and then, just as I my teenage crush was beginning to blossom, he moved out. Behind…
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Everyone struggles sometimes. Whilst our social media feeds may be showing perfect lives with sunshine filled images of smiling children and perfectly designed houses, there are cracks. There are cracks in the exterior. There are cracks in the façade. Everyone struggles. Everyone is coping with something. I want to share something… This isn’t a story about me, or a story about Cygnet. It is a story about a special person, a person very dear to me and Cygnet. A…
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