It’s Hard to Raise a Child Alone: Lived Experiences of Widowed Parents in Raising Their School-Age Children

Albert Albina

Abstract


The study aimed to explore the lived experiences of widowed parents in raising schoolchildren. The researcher employed a phenomenological design and reflexive thematic analysis. The in-depth interview participants included six widowed parents in Bayawan City, Philippines. The researcher generated three themes from the experiences shared by the widowed parents who are raising schoolchildren: financial difficulty, loss of marital and parental support, and adjustment to new parental roles. The death of a spouse meant a cut in the family income thereby leaving the widowed parents struggling to raise their schoolchildren. Further, it also meant the loss of marital and parental support for the children since widowed parents have to accomplish various domestic and parental responsibilities all by themselves. Meanwhile, widowed parents' adjustments to the transitions before and after they lose their spouses are conveyed in the following subthemes: disparities between having and losing a partner, emotional distress, and adapting to new responsibilities left by their deceased partners. The researcher concludes that widowed parents who are raising schoolchildren experienced financial difficulties, loss of marital and parental support, and their need to adjust to new parental roles left by their deceased partners. This study advances knowledge of the experiences of widowed parents of school-aged children and their responses to one of life's most upsetting occurrences. Relevant programs and interventions, like counseling programs and livelihood training, may be implemented using the study’s findings to help this vulnerable population. 


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