Parenting on Empty: When You’re a Single Mum, Neurodivergent, and Still Showing Up

Lately, my life is a freaking mess... the kind where I hide in the bathroom just to breathe.

The kind of mess where cereal ends up in shoes, the laundry never gets fully folded, and silence is suspicious. I know some of you feel this too. Like you're constantly playing catch-up with no halftime.

Messy is beautiful too

Tuesday has become my favourite day. Not because anything magical happens, but because my daughter goes to her home education clubs, and my little boy stays all day with a lovely childminder (an absolute angel who saves my sanity one week at a time).

That day gives me a bit of space to reset... or sometimes just sit in silence with a hot drink that doesn’t go cold.

Nighttime routines? Still chaotic. I spend the last drops of energy wrestling in bed with my son like we’re doing toddler jiu-jitsu. It’s his way of releasing that final burst of energy before he can even think about sleeping. And yes, he still wakes frequently. Sleep is a luxury around here.

Sometimes, I flash back to when my daughter was his age. I feel like I’m reliving the same struggles but with a toddler-sized hurricane this time. Twice the energy. Twice the mess.

But then I look at her now. She’s eight, full of personality and insight, and thriving in her own way. And I remember: they don’t stay little for long.

Even in the middle of the chaos, I still get those clingy, giggly moments. The wild, happy bursts of laughter. The joy in a toddler being unapologetically free.

It makes me forget the mess... for a moment at least.

But the biggest shift? Learning to manage my own big emotions. That’s something no parenting book really prepared me for. I’m still learning. Every. Single. Day. Unlearning old patterns, trying to break cycles I didn’t choose, and showing up even when I’m on empty. And somehow, these little humans of mine are teaching me just as much or even more than I’m teaching them.

I wouldn’t be who I am today without them. And even in the mess, there’s growth. There’s love. There’s progress. We’re all still figuring it out.

Did this resonate?

I’d love to hear from you.

→ DM me on Instagram: @silvia.london89

→ Or email me: thepracticalparent1@gmail.com

You’re never alone in this.

Let’s remind each other: it’s not about being perfect. It’s about showing up.

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