The Courage to Be a Single Mother: Becoming Whole Again After Divorce

by Sheila Ellison

Book Overview

I was still a mother, but not under any circumstance I recognized. I was no longer a wife. Instead of being someone who fit into my community, I became a woman who stuck out. I felt I was standing... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0062516515
• ISBN13: 9780062516510
• Release Date: May 2000
• Publisher: HarperOne
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.5" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Crucial Divorce Help For Real Women

If I read one more article about how some big celebrity couple is having an amicable divorce, but the wife and kids are doing great, I think I'm going to scream! No normal woman or child can go through divorce without some Emotional trauma. More importantly, THESE CELEBRITIES DON'T HAVE MONEY ISSUES TO DEAL WITH. When you don't know how you can keep up the payments on your house (or if you will have to relocate your kids to another town or at least another school system) there's a sense of urgency that I never see celebrities discuss in People magazine. When going through a divorce I discovered that there is a laundry list of money matters that I had to work out for my kids at a time when I was least emotinally prepared to do it. My therapist and several women in my support group urged me to read a book called "SIMPLE MONEY SOLUTIONS: 10 WAYS YOU CAN STOP FEELING OVERWHELMED BY MONEY AND START MAKING IT WORK FOR YOU" by Family Circle Columnist, Nancy Lloyd. Her eye-opening chapter on dealing with the financial aspects of divorce and how to go about finding the best lawyer, financial planner and tax and pension experts made the difference between my kids having a financially secure future and not. Nancy includes lots of other important advice on money matters but this chapter was the one I (and my kids) would have lived to regret had I not been told about it. And Sheila Ellison's book has helped me deal with many emotional aspects of the divorce that took me months to even realize my kids and I were going through (the shock of the divorce lasts much longer than I ever would have thought). Both books are written in a warm and supportive way. What Sheila and Nancy write will spare you and your kids a lot of unneeded suffering. Both books got my kids and me through the worst time of our lives.

How I Kept My Family Strong and Healthy After Divorce

My husband and I began drifting apart after our second child was born. Still nothing prepared me for the fear, anger and financial problems I suddenly faced when he left. My sister helped me through the first few weeks and gave me 2 books that literally saved my family. The first book she had seen Diane Sawyer discuss on "GOOD MORNING AMERICA" with the author Nancy LLoyd. It's called "SIMPLE MONEY SOLUTIONS: 10 WAYS YOU CAN STOP FEELING OVERWHELMED BY MONEY AND START MAKING IT WORK FOR YOU." Nancy really understands what a divorcing mother needs to know about her finances and lays out about a dozen important steps to take as soon as you know you're headed for divorce. I was given several other books by friends, but "SIMPLE MONEY SOLUTIONS" was the easiest to understand and follow -- and the only one that really made sense. Once I got my finances in order (and it's the last thing you FEEL like dealing with then but if you don't you and your kids will regret it) and my husband and I divvied up the house, his pension and our other property I could then deal with the emotional and day-to-day problems of suddenly being without my kids' father. "THE COURAGE TO BE A SINGLE MOTHER" which I saw discussed by OPRAH has shown me that I am not alone and that it takes months or longer to start accepting our new life. Until you reach that stage you really can't move on. Both these books got me through the worst time of my life. My family is stronger and at last beginning to regain a sense of normalcy. Sheila Ellison and Nancy Lloyd are angels on earth and are helping many mothers and children find hope and happiness again.

Taking Back My Life After Divorce With 2 Fantastic Books

I always took pride in giving my husband and kids the kind of happy family life that I never had growing up. So when my husband suddenly abandoned us for another woman I didn't know what to do first or where to turn for help. I was a stay-at-home mom so we had immediate money problems on top of the emotional ones. My sister put me in touch with a counselor who suggested 2 very helpful books. One was called, "SIMPLE MONEY SOLUTIONS: 10 WAYS YOU CAN STOP FEELING OVERWHELMED BY MONEY AND START MAKING IT WORK FOR YOU" by Nancy Lloyd (a Family Circle columnist and money expert). She includes a lot of financial advice for divorced parents and showed me what I needed to do IMMEDIATELY after the divorce. If I hadn't read this valuable information as soon as I did I would have had to sell the house and move my family into a small apartment in a less-than-desirable school district. Next, I started reading "THE COURAGE TO BE A SINGLE MOTHER" and it has been a roadmap for the emotional matters facing our family during a time when it's hard to get up in the morning let alone make good decisions. It's not an overstatement to say that these two books saved my family's dignity and have made it easier for us to get back to a normal life. These books will help you remember your spirit and bring your family closer together.

2 Books that got me through the divorce

Reading this book made me come face to face with the denial I was still in about my divorce. And worst of all, my kids were suffering. On the one hand were the emotional scars and on the other were the financial crisis I was living through on a daily basis (my husband ran up huge debts before the divorce and then filed for bankruptcy. He's living the high life with his girlfriend and I am struggling to pay off his bills). Since February, two books that I saw on television have changed my life. The first is "SIMPLE MONEY SOLUTIONS: 10 WAYS YOU CAN STOP FEELING OVERWHELMED BY MONEY AND START MAKING IT WORK FOR YOU" by Nancy Lloyd (who I saw on "GOOD MORNING AMERICA"). Her book has shown me so much, including how to get my husband's creditors to forgive $3,200 of his debts so that I can use my hard-earned money to help my kids live better. It also showed me what to tell and show my daughters and son about money so that they don't start out their adult lives as financially naive as I was. A few weeks later I saw "THE COURAGE TO BE A SINGLE MOTHER" discussed on "OPRAH" and it has helped me with many of the emotional issues surrounding single parenthood. Both books are blessings and my kids and I are much happier and closer as a result of my buying and reading these 2 books. They can help you too.

The Courage to Be A Single Mother

This book is a smart, emotionally charged read. I laughed out loud serveral times and cried at others. A page turner full of dramatic highs and lows, Sheila Ellison tells us the story of how she overcame divorce and built a new life for herself and her children. Throughout the book we also hear stories of other women who have survived divorce. Covering topics such as, child support, weekend party time with dad....then back home to fuddy duddy mom , re-entering the job force after giving up years to build a family, dating again, facing peer approval /dissaproval, finding a new home, handling attorneys.....readers can learn from the stories of these capable women. I did.