Young Parents: 5 Main Difficulties Faced Each Day

Young Parents: 5 Main Difficulties Faced Each Day

The lives of new moms can be incredibly challenging. Millions of women are facing similar issues with their first babies.

Some of the biggest problems are constant deprivation of sleep and, thus, fatigue, hard recovery, and pain, everyday stress, or even depression. To complicate matters, young mothers suffer the most because of the lack of “me” time and intensive schedule.

These common issues prove that motherhood, and especially its first years, is a real challenge by itself. However, student-moms face even more difficulties.

The number of women obtaining a university degree has been snowballing for decades; the number of student mothers was growing as well. In common sense, young mothers are no longer considered “traditional” students. Unlike their peers, they experience a faster transition into adulthood triggered not by college, but by familial responsibility.

Top Biggest Challenges Young Mothers Face

Trying to perform dual roles, college students who are already raising their children can stumble upon a wide range of difficulties. Getting used to the massive responsibility of motherhood can be hard. However, this thrilling time of your life doesn’t necessarily have to be dulled with lots of problems!

Being well aware of the upcoming challenges and possible solutions, one may be fully armed! To help young moms make a smoother transition into a new role, we have prepared a list of the top five most significant difficulties and solutions that can help overcome them!

Studying

Studying is difficult and time-consuming by itself. If you have a baby while still being in college or at university, most of your time will inevitably be dedicated to your child, most likely. Then how can you possibly find enough time for studying?

Taking a gap year of giving up on education isn’t an option for most young women nowadays. At the same time, they find it hard to keep the fine line between studying and being a mother. However, there is an alternative solution – you have to learn to ask for help. Be it professional help, like tutor’s assistance, or just asking friends and family to take off some of the childcare load – any option will bring at least some relief!

Mental Health

Giving birth is wonderful, but it may have some unpleasant consequences concerning a young mum’s mental health. Some women are at a higher risk of suffering from a number of conditions, including depression, baby blues, and postnatal depression.

Some of the often present symptoms are as follow:

• Mood swings

• Trouble eating

• Anxiety

• Lack of concentration

• Difficulty sleeping

• Overwhelming fatigue

• Panic attacks

• Difficulty bonding with a baby, etc.

If you experience any mental issues caused by childbirth, the critical thing is to know that you are not alone and help is always available. At this point, it is vital to surround yourself with supportive people, take good care of your mental wellbeing either with the help of prescribed meditations or some practices.

Seek out the advice if and when you need it. With the right approach, you will easily battle the symptoms!

Financial Problems

With the birth of a baby, one’s life changes a lot, and so do the financial needs. Most students are living on a tight budget by default. Thus, when they give birth to a child, lots of financial issues may arise. Your needs will increase twice as a minimum, and that’s something you should be ready for! There are ways for young parents to save money. Read my having a baby on a budget tips for more advice on this.

Ideally, if you can rely on the financial support from family, it can help you avoid the struggle. However, there are a few alternatives. Of course, student-moms will likely not have the possibility to get a full-time position because newborns require almost 100% of time and attention. In this situation, a well-paid freelance job can be your best bet!

Breastfeeding

Becoming a mother for the first time in your life, you will hear a lot about the benefits of breastfeeding. However, one thing that people will likely not tell you is that this process doesn’t always come naturally as one would expect.

There are lots of dilemmas and difficulties related to breastfeeding that you must just accept and try to manage. The best thing one can do is examining the issue, taking all possible measures to prevent inconvenient situations, and consult with the specialists if needed.

Lack of Time

Becoming young parents, most people start lacking time for literally everything – work, studies, themselves, sleep, and many other things. However, this is a difficulty faced by all new parents, not just the ones who are still at college.

Learn to manage your time wisely! Get on a specific schedule and plan your days in advance to ease the stress and lack of time.

Final Words

After learning about all these difficulties, you might think that having a child in a college will be the biggest challenge in your life. Well, it might be true.

However, with a smart approach and support, you will easily overcome every issue connected with motherhood.

One more thing we know for sure is that while combating this challenge, you will learn what true, unconditional love and happiness are! Being young parents is not easy but it’s possible!

Guest Article.