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If you’re a young mom and going to college, you’ve got a lot of weight on your shoulders to deal with. Being a mother is one of the most amazing experiences you could wish for – it’s also one of the most challenging times of your life.
According to recent studies, about 2.7 million students in the US were mothers, with 62% of them being single mothers. While you may be blessed to have a partner at your side to help you out, many young moms don’t have that privilege. This can make college even more difficult, as your child won’t pick the time or place to need your attention. Let’s take a look at what you can do to cope with motherhood a bit more easily as a college student.
Use Time Management Apps
No matter how good you are at organizing your time, you’ll still face a challenge when it comes to working on your college assignments and balancing parenting and study. Moreover, you should reach out to your university and inquire about any benefits you can receive as a young mom, such as not having to attend certain lectures or exercises. As you start working on your assignments, you should start using time management apps regularly, such as:
● Forest
● Todoist
● Toggle Track
● TimeTree
These tools will help you keep your college obligations under control, especially since you’ll spend a lot of your free time with your child. By having a time management app handy, you’ll easily chip away at large assignments and get more things done than you would without them.
Look for College Help
As a young mom, you’ll likely come across other young moms or people who would be willing to help you out a bit. By finding a confidant, or a friend you trust at college, you’ll have an easier time staying in the loop. They can inform you of lecture changes, new assignments, and any updates you may want to know about as soon as they happen.
You can also use the best essay sites online to have your papers or essays written and edited by a reliable professional. This will help free up your time so that you can focus on your child more. Keep in touch with the confidant you’ve made at college and use their tips and insight to prioritize your assignments more easily.
Don’t Separate your Motherhood from Studying
While it may seem counterintuitive to study with your child present at all times, it’s very helpful for both of you. Your child won’t feel any separation anxiety from their mom being absent for long hours. You on the other hand will be able to focus more easily and feel at rest knowing that your child is safe next to you.
This will lead to you finishing your college assignments more quickly and with better results because you’ll be inspired to do your best. If your child needs quick attention at any point, you can turn your efforts toward it for a few minutes before going back to your tasks. If you are the type of person who can multitask, don’t exclude your child from your study sessions.
Coping with Academic and Motherhood Challenges
What you should do as a mom and a student is recontextualizing what’s happening to you at the moment. Yes, you might have difficulties finding the time to rest or work on an important assignment right now. However, both your college experience and the fact that your child is a toddler are momentary challenges.
In fact, balancing parenting and study time is all about starting with your baby first and then looking at what time and energy you have available after. If you have the privilege of having a support system around you, use it. Ask your parents, your partner, and your friends for some help anytime you feel overwhelmed and you’ll have an easier time coping with early motherhood and your college assignments.
Bio: Joanne Elliot is a writer, social media marketer, and editor. She is adept at writing both academic and online content through her essays, papers, and case studies. Joanne loves writing and does it in her spare time as well where she journals and brainstorms new and exciting ideas to pursue.