The truth about dating AS A SINGLE MUM

Finding Mr Right isn't quite as easy as Nilufer Atik, 48, thought it would be

- NILUFER ATIK.

As the waiter topped up my wine, I chatted comfortably to my date, Charlie*. Things were going well - he was tall, handsome, had a good job in publishing, and I could feel the 'spark' everyone talks about.

We were getting along famously and I began to wonder, 'Could this be it?' He'd arrived a bit late and red-faced to our date at a bar, which would usually have put me off. But when he explained that his young daughter had thrown a tantrum and launched a toy at his face, causing a cut to his lip that required a trip to A&E, I couldn't help but sympathise. Dating as a single parent certainly wasn't easy.

DATING POOL

I'd decided to dip my toe back in the dating pool when my son Milo, now seven, was four. I'd been single for a year after splitting with his dad and felt emotionally ready. But my first date seemed to set the tone for what was to come.