Arghhh- popping balloons!!! That must be the worst thing about being a single parent- no-one to delegate balloon blowing-up too when it's the kids birthdays !!

Seriously though ditto for what everyone else has said...please take care of yourself and don't SI. My main coping mechanism is to blank out all thoughts; kinda put them into an imaginery box inside my head and put the lid on until I have to face it again. That way I focus on 'the here and now' and function at an adequate level. Other than that I use lots of distractions techniques like you will find in the SI forum lists, mine include coming here , crosswords, walks, TV, reading magazines, going for a drive with no destination in mind (not such a great option with petrol prices so high!), helping out all my friends with their problems (it feels like I've kinda become the neighbourhood agony aunt with 3 neighbours and another friend all regularly coming to me for a listening ear and wanting me to try and help find solutions for their probs...this is a FANTASTIC distraction lololol). Oh, and I tend to overeat too
I hope you are feeling a little better, and that you are able cope in a safe way.
Take care
(((((music1)))))