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Life

12th Nov 2015

Single Dad Posts Emotional ‘Thank You’ To Father’s Forum After His Partner Left Home

“I was a single father and had to fulfill two roles. I wasn't sure I could do it.”

Her

Being a single parent is never going to be easy.

Yes, you’ll always try your best, and you’ll give every fibre of your being to raising your child, but there will be some paths you have to cross for the first time.

Chances are you’ll be self-critical, worrying you’re not making every right decision along the way.

Richard Johnson was just getting used to being a father when his daughter Persephone’s mother left them when she was just a month old.

Johnson tried to adapt to being a single father, and took comfort in looking up YouTube tutorials and relying on networking group Life of Dads for advice, information and support.

Now that his daughter is 10 months old, Richard wanted to thank the community for the advice that helped shape him as a father to his little girl:

Life of Dad,My name is Richard Johnson, and I’m a single father to a beautiful little girl named Persephone. Her…

Posted by Life of Dad on Tuesday, 10 November 2015

The post has now started to go viral – with more than 300,000 shares liking the post since yesterday evening.

The message even encouraged other people to step forward and share their stories of acting as a single parent – both men and women who could relate to some of the barriers Johnson faced in his first few months:

Facebook response to richard

Overwhelmed by the response, Richard posted a second message, ending it with one important reminder to anyone who is struggling to cope with the responsibility:

I honestly don’t know what to say. I’ve been reading everyone’s comments and I’d be lying if I said I haven’t became a…

Posted by Life of Dad on Wednesday, 11 November 2015

“P.S
For any single parents out there, if you ever feel like the load is to much or you’re just not good enough. Look into your amazing child’s eyes and just tell them you love them. You’d be amazed to see how much strength you have when someone else is counting on you and loving you more and more for what you’re doing. You’ll find strength where you thought you had none.”