Sole Mothers … Sleep, Control and Leisure

Abstract

This paper investigates the interrelatedness of sleep and leisure for sole mothers. Data were drawn from a small qualitative study of sole mothers and their work/life balance. For these sole mothers, leisure was experienced as sleep (sleep-ins and naps) and through accessing ‘me’ time when the children were asleep. Although such leisure time was highly valued by the women, their access to this time could be denied by their children’s disrupted sleep. Sleep was experienced as a contested leisure space. Managing children’s pre-sleep and bedtime routines provided the space for women to experience time for themselves. Much of the research to date has viewed sleep as a biological function: the interrelatedness of sleep and leisure for the sole mothers in this study suggests further research needs to be conducted into the multifaceted role sleep plays in the health and wellbeing of mothers and their families.