To ask for tips from working single parents?

[solomam]

I'll start by saying that I am not a single parent in the true sense of the word because I do have a partner. But he has started working away every other week and so from a practical perspective, I am technically a single parent every other week because I have only one pair of hands.

I work 4 days, I have a stressful job and a lengthy (ish) commute. I have 2 DC - one nursery aged and one older. I am absolutely EXHAUSTED from my first week juggling it all by myself. No family support so it literally is just me when DH is away every other week.

Any tips, please, from single working parents? How on earth do you do it?! Do you all have extended family support or are you as frazzled as I feel right now? 😩

You still have twice as many hours per day between you to do all of those things though, however you choose together to divide up your 48 hours each day between earning, childcare and housework. So in practical terms as I and others have pointed out, the comparison to a single parent trying to fulfil all of these roles in only 24 hours per day makes no sense.

You say he can't do more and that you're finding it hard. In that case the balance of tasks between you is probably not correct and some adjustments to working arrangements/ division of household chores should to be made. Surely he can do more at weekends when he is at home so that you are on top of everything before he leaves?

@solomam you work 4 days a week, you OH is away every other week. There are roughly 4 weeks a month, therefore you only manage your job and your children 8 days a month.