'I Am SOLO' star Ok-soon reveals past struggles as single mother

During a YouTube appearance on the 11th, Ok-soon from the 22nd season of 'I Am SOLO' shared how she secured a lump sum of child support in exchange for her ex-husband's permanent absence from her and her son's lives.

Ok-soon from the 22nd season of 'I Am SOLO' has drawn attention by opening up about the pain she endured while raising her son alone as a single mother. She revealed that after facing challenges ranging from a paternity lawsuit to child support issues, she reached an agreement where she would receive child support on the condition that her ex-husband would never appear before her or the child again for the rest of their lives. She also looked back on her difficult past, including the story of how she had to flee to Jeju Island following opposition from her family and friends at the time of childbirth.

On the 11th, a video titled "The miraculous life reversal story of 22nd season I Am SOLO Ok-soon, who lived at rock bottom and even went through a single mother paternity lawsuit" was released on the YouTube channel 'A-Grade Jang Young-ran'. Ok-soon, who met Gyeong-su and became a married couple during the 22nd season divorcee special of the SBS PLUS and ENA entertainment program 'I Am SOLO', spoke candidly about her time as a single mother raising her son alone during the broadcast.

Ok-soon cited the child support lawsuit as her most difficult challenge at the time. "It was very hard. The hardest part was the child support lawsuit," she explained, adding, "He wouldn't pay child support, claiming the child wasn't his." Because they were not legally married, she had to legally prove the child was his, a process that involved unbearable circumstances.

She expressed mental distress when recalling the moment people came to the court to collect the child's hair for paternity testing. "Since we weren't legally married, people came from the court to pull the baby's hair to prove it. Because the baby was so young and there were no hair roots, they had to pull a whole clump. It was mentally so difficult at that time," Ok-soon said. The situation of having to have a handful of a young child's hair collected left a deep wound for her.

While the child support issue was resolved once the paternity test confirmed the child was his, the method Ok-soon chose was unique. She revealed, "Naturally, the paternity was confirmed, but the condition was that he would not appear before us until the day he dies, and I received it in a lump sum." Instead of receiving monthly payments, she set the condition that her ex-husband would never appear before her or the child for the rest of his life.

Ok-soon explained that she wanted to protect the money she received for her child's future. "I felt like if I kept it, I might spend it bit by bit, so to protect the baby's [money], I took out a loan and bought a house," she stated. Rather than exhausting the child support as living expenses, she chose to preserve it as an asset to leave for the child by securing a home.

She also disclosed the story of leaving for Jeju Island ahead of the birth. Ok-soon confessed that her parents opposed the childbirth, and even her close friends did not agree with her decision to have the child. "My father and mother opposed it. That was the reason I ran away. No one was in favor," she said, conveying the desperation of the time: "Even my close friend said it was not okay, so I felt like I shouldn't keep listening to that. I felt I had to run away to a place where no one knew me."

She experienced extreme mental difficulties during that process. Ok-soon confessed her state of mind at the time, saying, "Depression was added, and I felt like if something happened to me, it would be better to just go to Jeju Island for a trip and end it." She revealed the moments when she was pushed to her psychological limit by the reality of having to handle childbirth and childcare alone, compounded by the opposition from those around her.

Having moved past the pain of her time as a single mother to form a new family with Gyeong-su through 'I Am SOLO', Ok-soon's confession drew significant attention as it revealed the past hidden behind the bright image she showed on screen. Her story is garnering interest as she personally reflected on her life, sharing the paternity lawsuit, child support conflicts, and the time she had to flee to Jeju Island alone.

Read the original (Korean)