Are You a Parent That’s Dating Again After a Divorce?
Help! I am the mother of a 17-year-old but, I am embarrassed to admit, I myself am acting like a 17-year-old again! This can’t be good. I am newly divorced and 47 years old, and while I did hope that someday I would start dating again, my hoping was theoretical. I haven’t been on a date in over twenty years and this is all new territory for me. What makes dating even more terrifying is the thought of teenagers in my house who will judge me.
I actually have someone I am interested in at work and he recently friended me on Facebook. Big deal. Right? Weel, It is a huge deal to me! Just like my daughter and her friends, I now check my texts and Facebook several times a day to see if I have any messages.
How can this be that I’m turning into a giddy teenager again? I thought I outgrew this. Those butterflies I had as a teen are back!
My kids (I also have a fifteen year old son) seem ok when we joke around about me dating, but when it actually happens, I’m not so sure how they will feel. Apparently, instead of looking for my parents’ approval, this time I will be looking for my kid’s approval?
How do other single parents deal with this issue?
I think you should be happy to have these feelings and enjoy it!
Read the Nicholas Sparks book Nights in Rodanthe, it is much better than the movie and gives the perspective of a 45 year old single mom. Yes, it is fiction but interesting regarding what can happen to women when they find themselves single with children at home.
I love this article. Thank you “Not there yet” for the book suggestion. I will have to go get it.
I found myself having the same feelings when I started dating again after my 7 year marriage was over. I don’t have a teenager yet, but my daughter is 4. I did feel like I was acting like a teenager all over again. Talking and sharing my feelings and experience with friends really helped keep me grounded. Make sure you find some single friends to compare stories with. And remember that it is okay to feel a little like a teenager.
Good Luck
I got divorced when my daughter was 5 and I too felt like a giddy teenager. I had just turned 35 and felt 17 again. I met an amazing man with a 5-yo and and a 12-yo. We would talk on Instant Messenger for 3 hours a night and would text, phone or email constantly.
The younger kids were pretty accepting of the relationship and the now 13-yo has come around. They still all say “Ewwww gross” when we kiss but they laugh.
We’re still together and it has been almost 2 years. I still get goosebumps when I see him and blush when I think about him. I hope I feel this way forever!