Over compensating is a reality in a single parent home. Coupled with trying to prevent your child from feeling disappointed by his father who does not want to contribute towards his well-being, just made me go over board. I tried so hard to make sure that my son had everything, that I was always in debt in addition to being mentally and physically exhausted. The only reason I felt like I was not doing enough was because it was just me trying to be a mum and a dad at the same time. It certainly was not an easy period in my life, but I did get through it. It is completely natural to feel that you have to be both parents when one is absent, however feeling like I have to get my child everything he asks for is impractical, unnecessary and does more harm than good. At the time, I didn’t know this of course, but as my son grew older I came to the realization that I am a great mother and I am doing more than enough in both the dad and mum departments. It’s a natural process of adjustment and children eventually do grow up and all the emotional turmoil coupled with all the days of trying hard do pay off and everything eventually works itself out.
