I really need some motivation right now Or maybe the truth?

So Im a 34 year old single mother of 2. A 9 year old with autism and 2 years old. Im what you would call an unskilled worker and when covid-19 pandemic hit back in March I lost my job

I stumble upon programming and figured I can do this. 5 months down the line Im finding the concept extremely hard. Like I now understand fully html and css syntax but when it come’s to actually use it in an actual project, on my own without watching any youtube tutorial, I have no clue! It is extremely frustrating that now Im starting to doubt myself maybe this isn’t for me? But with everything that’s going on with the economy. I need this for my future self and my kids.

Plus with a special need child I literally only have about 1 hour a day to do any learning as it take’s hours on most nights to put my son to bed so I usually see myself starting studying at around 11 pm. By the time it’s 12 midnight Im so tired I can’t go on or understand anything anymore.

Am I putting myself upfor a failure? Can I really do this or is it just a distance dream? I feel so sad and defeated!

Learning something completely new can be extremely difficult. As an adult we tend to take our previous experiences for granted. Sometimes we can pick things up relatively quickly if it is similar to something we already know.

It is quite common for people to be frustrated when learning to code because they have almost no comparable experience. They try to rush through learning and get discouraged when they don’t catch on as fast as they would like. This is actually what will set you up for failure.


In programming, we have to learn to think in new ways. We go slowly and examine carefully so that we can understand the problem before having a prayer at solving it.

Computer code doesn’t care about ‘close enough’.

Think about coding this way…You’re not here to learn how to code, you’re here to learn how to solve difficult problems. What problem is more difficult than trying to survive as a single mom with 2 young children in 2020.


I know you’re feeling the pressure right now, and you feel like you need to start producing soon to keep the lights on. However, and please trust me when I say this, if you are trying to learn to code with such a mindset, you will certainly fail.

Make no mistake that becoming a competent coder is time-intensive. If your reason for learning is to land a coding job in the next few months, then I would suggest that you reevaluate your plans.

However, If you have your mindset on coding then let nothing stop you. Use every spare moment you have. Having someone there to help you when you need it is extremely important.

This link leads to the FCC discord chatroom where you can ask for coding help.


“Don't fear failure. — Not failure, but low aim, is the crime. In great attempts it is glorious even to fail.” — Bruce Lee

It aint over til its over. Good Luck

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Thank you so much for your reply. It’s good to know these things take’s time and it is not just me!

Unfortunately I don’t have anyone to help me but Im determined to make this work.

I think you forgot to add a link the support group. Thank you

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@codemomof2 sorry about that

FCC discord chatroom