I’ve watched a lot of my single friends raise their children. It looked incredibly difficult to me. But they managed. And the kids are fine. Some aren’t, but most are just fine.
I don’t think being raised by single parents automatically screws people up. I think growing up in dysfunctional families, whether your parents are married or not, is what screws people up.
I made a deliberate choice not to be a single parent. I didn’t think it would be right for me and I didn’t think it would be best for my child. But really, it just looked too damn hard. And I had a bang-up career that I loved. I wondered how the single moms did it, it just looked too damn hard.
I was diagnosed with Bipolar I when I was in my 30s. Bipolar is a genetic disease. Not every child inherits the disorder, but some do. That wouldn’t have stopped me, necessarily, from having biological children, but in retrospect, I’m glad it didn’t happen.
Only you can decide what is best for you and your children. Trust your gut.
