Personal Experience Essay Sample: Being a Single Mother and a Student

Being a single mother is a challenging and stressful way of life. If an individual can strike a balance between taking care of the baby and school activities as well as having time for yourself, it can be gratifying. Writing an essay about a single mother and a student is a personal assignment to me. I am a single parent and a college senior. I was a nontraditional learner, and I encountered various challenges that most traditional students will never experience. As a result, my experiences made me to understand the reason why single parents desire to attain a college degree. Nonetheless, the challenge of providing a stable home for my baby was intensifying as well as the aspirations of attaining a degree.

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The thought of being a single mum never crosses the mind of any person during marriage since one tends to believe it will be until death does you separate. However, there comes a time in a relationship when a person has to make up his or her mind on whether to continue living in an abusive relationship or go on your own with your child and be happy, safe, and at peace. My decision to abandon the father of my child was reached after he became an abusive husband. Therefore, I decided I do not need to take the abuse. I had to move out of the house and try making it on my own by going to school so that I could complete my degree program.

The first few months my parents and friends accepted my decision since I needed to feel safe. My parents were supportive, and they actually suggested I should go back home and stay with them, but I had to complete my studies. It is necessary to note that there are many challenges a single parent endures to the extent that one has to make a meaningful decision to survive. In most instances, being single entails making an essential decision even when it comes to a person's needs. In that, there are cases where I had to choose whether to buy groceries or shoes for the child or pay rent since I did not have enough money and I had to figure out where to get help. In such situations, I always turn to my parents and friends.

Consequently, going back to the university after dropping out of school for some years and I already have a kid to look after is a lot harder than I ever thought. Being able to balance between schools and taking care of the child takes dedication, hard work, and also denying myself the little things that I initially took for granted such as taking a nap. Despite the hardships, I motivated myself since I believed I have been through the worst days, therefore, completing my education and providing a better life for my child as well as myself will not be hard for me to attain. Being a single mum made me to have a lot of willpower and also to develop an immense sense of humor to avoid being depressed. Moreover, I managed the little money that I was able to make during my working days wisely so that I could avoid the financial strains or long working hours. To my advantage, I was able to get a comfortable job that was less demanding, and it offered a better way of life for my child and me.

Being a single mum and a student, I had to communicate and join forces with my friends who would help me with some tasks such taking my child to school since I could not make it on my own. At the back of my mind, I had to make sure that my parental duties are met before I could go to school or even at work. I had to ensure that my child knew where I was so that she could reach me at any time because I always knew where to find her. In case of any activities with my child, I had to check my schedules so that I could also create time for her. I developed a calendar which I listed all our activities such as pickups times for school, drop off times and other ventures. I had talked with my instructors to allow me to get in a class with my phone on vibration so that my child could get in touch with me in case she needed something.

At first, I did not realize how hard it was balancing between schoolwork, family, and finances, although I knew that if I was dedicated on ensuring that my daughter was well and I achieve my goals, then nothing would hinder me from being successful. I was lucky enough because my first semester had few classes hence there were no much demands from school. However, everything that followed after completely tested my patience and endurance. It is my humble pledge that single mothers should not be treated with aggression since they have a lot of things on their heads. Such behaviors are harmful to the child as well as the mother since it affects the determination of getting a degree leave alone the financial hardship.

It is also very vital to note that many single mothers are struggling to afford the best care and education for their kids by working in more than one job not forgetting they are still going to school. Notably, this perception should not rule away from the necessity of getting financial support from the father of the child. Like In my situation, if the father who helped to create the child was responsible, I could not go through a lot of difficulties. The issue of getting money from the father of the child has become a thorny issue that needs to be addressed. The government should address this issue with a lot of seriousness that it deserves so that the single mothers can also have an easy life even after parting ways with their male counterparts.

To sum up, success has always been my central goal regardless of the hardships I had to go through. Single student parents go through the challenge of taking care of the child, financial strains and a lot of workloads as well as the struggle to keep the pace in school. However, the aspect of acquiring academic capabilities played an essential role since it intensified my willpower. I have faced a lot of severe hardships that have sharpened me to become a better person and a good parent to my child. Therefore, the welfare of my child along with other progressive inspirations always enhanced my perseverance of attaining my goals.