Alexandra Collier: Single motherhood by choice: the triumphs, challenges and secrets of solo parenting

Today’s episode is one that many of you asked us for – what does it take to have a child on your own? Whether you’re sure you want kids, still trying to decide, or want to be child-free, this week’s guest has many life lessons that can help you figure out, or reaffirm, what’s right for you. Alexandra Collier was 37 and living in Brooklyn with the man she loved when she woke up to a ravenous hunger to have a baby that unfortunately her younger partner didn't share. What happened next is an extraordinary story of courage, hope, and what it means to start a family on your own terms. Alexandra’s memoir Inconceivable: Heartbreak, Bad Dates and Finding Solo Motherhood is a moving account of that journey, and she shares with Jill the logistics, emotional complexity, financial implications and judgement she faced when she chose to become a single parent. But she also speaks of the joy and empowerment she’s found in following her own path, and what life looks like for her now with a five-year-old. Alexandra is an award-winning Melbourne writer who has written for theatre, screen and print. She lived and worked in New York for a decade where her plays were produced Off Broadway You can follow Alexandra on Instagram: @alexandracollierwrites and learn more about her book, Inconceivable, here. To stay in touch with Well Enough Alone, you can follow us on Instagram @wellenoughalonepod or @jillstark__ or support the show and get subscriber-only early and ad-free episodes on Patreon. Well Enough Alone is a Spare Room production. Our producers are Kieran Simpson and Trent Bartlett. Get early access to new episodes by subscribing on Patreon. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Well Enough Alone is a celebration of solo living that tears up the “sad and lonely” single script and embraces a path that can be joyful and fulfilling.Because there is more to life than “partnered and happy” or “single and searching.”There is solo and thriving.Hosted by best-selling author and award-winning journalist, Jill Stark, this podcast is for anyone who’s ever been told that being single makes you incomplete. Or that life only begins when you find “the one”.To leave “well enough alone” means to stop trying to change something that’s already good enough.What if the one you’ve been looking for is you? Could embracing your single status rather than fearing it be the key to a happy life?Jill talks to inspiring guests, some who are single and some who aren’t, about what they’ve learned from time spent in their own company, and interviews experts in psychology, human behaviour, business, health and wellbeing, about how to thrive alone.Whether you’re happily single, trying to get comfortable with your solo status, or partnered and looking to carve out more time for yourself, Well Enough Alone will empower you to live your life your way. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.