Are Single Moms Better Off Than Married Moms?

It’s time to rewrite the story of single motherhood

Photo by eberhartmark/pixabay

I recently received a pitch that began:

Single moms are superheroes — twice the work, twice the stress, twice the tears.

I experienced the same cringey reaction that I experience whenever anyone refers to mothers as “super” anything. Not because we’re not super, but because the idea that mothers need superpowers to raise small humans drives me nuts.

None of us became mothers, single or otherwise, because we wanted to be superheroes. And we don’t even get cool costumes; we just get mom jeans.1

But the opening line of the aforementioned pitch failed to resonate for other reasons, too. I’ve been a single mom for nearly a year now, and my own experience has undeniably involved less work, less stress, and fewer tears. This is a story of single motherhood that I know many others experience, but one that hardly ever gets told.

These are the stories we’re used to hearing:

Single mother as sacrificial superhero

This single mother doesn’t get to be a showy superhero, like the Batmans and Iron Mans that dominate our cultural landscape. She’s no Wonder Woman, either. But she’s strong and can…