There’s no way around it. Single-parent dating can be a challenge.
Don’t let that discourage you, though. The ultimate goal of single-parent dating is an eventual happier life with increased stability for all. And that certainly is possible.
How so? Here are some quick tips to help you get there.
Plan Time for Everyone
The infatuation or “in-love” stage of a relationship is a blast. The temptation is to unknowingly spend all your time with your new-found potential mate.
This can lead to emotions for your children that are difficult to keep in check. They’ll likely feel they already lost one of their parents and now they’re losing you.
Fear, anger, sadness and jealousy are normal emotions for children to struggle through during just about any single-parent dating scenario at some point. If most of your time goes only into your dating relationship, your children will really struggle.
Also, if you’re not careful, you may feed into unrealistic expectations of how much time you’ll be able to devote to your potential mate in the future. You certainly don’t want to create the bad habit of neglecting your children once the relationship grows more serious.
At times, you may wonder if your kids are totally against your date. But that may not be the case at all. They just desperately NEED time with you.
So be sure to spend time with your date and children separately and, later, together when the time is right.
Your Children Are Dating Too
The reality is when you date someone when you already have kids, your potential mate has children or both, everyone’s involved in the dating process.
This means that if you can’t see a healthy fit with your date into your family, then it’s best to end the relationship sooner than later.
This also means that even if you think you’ve found “the one” there needs to be sensitivity towards your children.
Be careful about showing affection too early in a relationship around them. This could be difficult for your child to handle.
Also, realize that just as you’ll experience ups and downs in your dating relationship, so will your child.
At one point, your child may be excited about the prospect of a new family dynamic. Another time, they may be strongly opposed.
Frequently talk to and prep your child about where the relationship is going being careful only to share what is necessary.
Only include your children in activities with your date when things become more advanced. Especially young children can develop a quick attachment with your potential mate.
It could be a challenging loss if they build a relationship with your date only to see it dissolve before their eyes.
Wrapping Things Up
Sound challenging? It is.
But is it possible to have success in single-parent dating and reach a conclusion everyone’s happy with? Yes.
It’ll be work. Then again, is there really anything good that doesn’t require work?
Keep researching ways to become an all-star at single-parent dating, talk to others who’ve been through the process and consider reaching out to a trusted professional to increase your chances of success.
With the help and encouragement of others, you can do this! Schedule your appointment online using our online scheduling tool, call us at (949) 393-8662, or text us.
