Jennylyn Mercado Tries Her Best to Help Single Moms Like Her

Actress Jennylyn Mercado is hopeful that she is putting her influence to good use by reaching out to fellow mothers, who, just like her, have children with special needs. 

Jennylyn does not hide the fact that Alex Jazz, her 9-year-old son with former boyfriend and actor Patrick Garcia, has special needs. 

Thanks to social media, many moms write to the 30-year-old actress seeking her advice how to deal with the struggles of being a single mom to a child with special needs.

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“Andami kong nari-receive na mga ganyan, yung mga personal messages sa Instagram, ‘I need help…’ mga ganyan. ‘Mommy, ako…’ mga ganito,” she says in an interview with SmartParenting.com.ph last March 15 during her rehearsal. 

Jennylyn often has the following reminder. “Kailangan mong tutukan yung lahat ng ginagawa. Kailangan kung ano ang ginagawa niya [ng anak mo] sa school, ganun din ang ginagawa sa bahay. Kung ang sinasabi ng doctor na gawin, kailangan talagang strict ka.” 

Since her work demands her to be out of the house most of the time, Jennylyn said she leaves specific instructions to her house helpers how to take care of her son.

“Kasi usually wala rin ako, e kasi nasa taping ako, nasa work ako. Pero kung ganyan, kung lahat naka-sync yung sa school, naka-sync yung sa doctor, sa therapy, sa bahay, pare-pareho ng knowledge, magwo-work talaga,” she swears.

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Jennylyn believes that educating and sharing information, no matter how small, could help these mothers deal with their challenging situation.

“Yung mga gano’ng kasimpleng bagay, malaking tulong na ‘yon para sa kanila.” She adds, “Tutok ako sa mga personal messages sa Facebook, sa Instagram.”

For the actress, lending her time to listen to their troubles, as simple as it may be, could help her fellow moms realize that they are not alone in their battle and make them hopeful about their future.

“Yung mga nagmi-message sa akin madalas hindi nila alam ang gagawin nila. Paano ba sila mabubuhay na mag-isa kasama lang nung anak nila.

“May mga nagtatanong kung saan ano yung mga therapy na ginagawa, paano ko hina-handle. Willing akong sagutin talaga, tinatiyaga kong sagutin kasi mahirap maging single mom, e.”

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