In a world where dual-incomes are almost necessary to survive and live the “good life”, more parents are having to say goodbye to their partners once, twice, or even weekly for work. This can put incredible strain on a partnership and create stress- even confusion- for children.
Personally, I spent most of the years in a marriage where my husband was away for work. A lot. While others found it shocking, I considered it normal. The new normal. He would work away up to two weeks away at a time or work Monday through Friday away then be home weekends. To manage, there were little tricks developed along the way to cope and continue on with day-to-day “family” duties. These, in addition to some sourced here, are below.
Which of these have you tried?
How do you successfully parent while your partner is away?
#1: Normalize The Experience
Like I mentioned in the previous paragraph, this is your version of normal. Relationships are not “one size fits all”; if work trips out of town come up, or a great job happens to take your partner or yourself out of your surroundings once in awhile, make it work.
#2: Don’t Forget About Yourself
Although the caretaker instincts may kick in, or you can feel compelled to run the house like a tight ship while your partner is away, don’t forget about yourself! Take time to have lunch with friends, plan a fun trip to the zoo with your children, see that movie you’ve been wanting to watch…from experience, both your partner and yourself will want time to stop and plans to be halted during this period but that’s unrealistic. Keep calm and carry on!
#3: Seek Out Those In Similar Situations
When my spouse was in the military, I sought out other wives in similar situations for support. This can also be done by finding fellow parents in the school PTA, neighbors that have active lifestyles or strangers you meet in book clubs, wine tastings, etc. The options are endless for meeting new people and making new friends that can relate!
#4: Create A Routine
In order to take the stress off of children while one parent is away, give them as much of a routine as possible. Children thrive when they feel secure! Keep up with their nightly bedtime rituals then also implement a set time each day they can call, text, or Facetime your spouse. This will give them something to look forward to each day plus predictability.
Source: Yummy Mummy Club
