Kelsey,
Bath, NY
Being a single mom is tough on its own, but being a single, recovering addict, and a felon is tougher than you think. Many people judge me on a regular basis. I get told I don’t deserve my children because I’m just going to use drugs again and hurt them by going back to prison. I get looked at like I’m less than because I don’t live up to a “normal” life. Honestly what is normal? to me normal is a button on a washing machine. There is no normal. But apparently me being a single mom, recovering addict, and a felon is not normal. That’s my normal, I will never understand how anyone can judge a person for just being a single mom don’t add the addict or the felon in there. I get told everyday I must have done something wrong to be a single mom with three kids because who leaves someone with three kids. The truth behind being a single mom, I was abused in every way you could think of. I tried to stick my relationship out for my children but it just kept getting worse. I finally realized my kids have seen enough of the abuse from their father so I will have no problem taking my things to leave this relationship. So yes it’s okay to be a single mom that is NORMAL if that’s the word people want to use. It’s okay to be a recovering addict, that doesn’t define the type of person you are, and it is also okay to be a felon. Life doesn’t always go as planned and maybe depression took over and I made a choice that put me in a place I wish I never went to and it took me from my children. I also learned a lot about myself there, so going to prison isn’t always as bad as people think it is. sometimes it does really help yo and make you realize your stronger than you thought. So judging someone by who they are and labeling them because they don’t live up to your standards shouldn’t mean they have to try to live by them either and they can set their own standards to please themselves not the people around them
