dont share their grievances with anyone fearing being judged being single doesnt mean that we are available its important that the way single mothers are perceived in society should change rather than considering a single mother weak its high time society starts looking at our strengths even today single mothers find it difficult to accept their status in an open forum because people tend to judge a divorcee is often judged for her character because in a patriarchal setup women are expected to accept men the way they are it doesnt matter if the husbands are drunkards gamblers or womanisers says mumbaibased kasturi deo who parted ways with her husband many years ago i am happy being single rather than being cheated on she adds another single mother srobona das says women in india and everywhere are constantly judged i have been called strong willful headstrong weak unsteady and been pitied in turn people have also assumed that i cannot sustain relationships i am fast have a loose character etc i have been cautioned not to post too many pictures on facebook that show me partying or having a good time lest people think i am neglecting my child patriarchy is ageold and deeply entrenched in most of us else would we even get married or utter vows to love honour and obey despite many examples of strong single mothers women ably and singlehandedly raising their children in india today she is still expected to be sanskaari waiting for the next man marriage and made the butt of jokes and snide remarkscitybased media professional riya agnihotri name changed shares i often face this being approached by men but since i have been a single mom for a while i know how to overcome such situations i chose the path single motherhood for a reason and i have proven to the world that im a confident woman who can fight all the challenges with a smile on my face dearth of time juggling household chores looking after kids and work barely leaves single mothers with the muchdeserved me time in fact they often find it challenging to adjust their schedule and be completely involved with their kids school activities their parenting skills patience and understanding are constantly put to test and to instil discipline in them while they spend most of their hours outdoors becomes challengingfinancial concerns single moms often have to brave through the storms of economic turmoil alone being a single parent she is the only one who earns in the family and has responsibilities of the household and her kids to fulfil you cannot be a stayathome mom as you need to think of the expenses so even though you know that staying with your children throughout their growingup years is important you cannot spend all your time rearing them the situation for those single mothers who are not well off gets even worse it is a tough job to plan your expenses and yet have savings