Divorce can lead to some conflicts and stressors, which can be difficult for children to deal with. Even when you and your spouse know that getting divorced is the best thing for you and your relationship, you likely feel a compulsion to insulate your children from the stress.
The good news is that there are many things you can do to make this go smoothly for them. Divorce doesn’t have to be a negative. Below are a few tips:
Maintain a positive and united front
First of all, you and your spouse may try presenting a united front to your children. Try to be positive, avoid saying negative things about each other in front of the kids and show them that the two of you are still working together as co-parents.
Keep disagreements away from them
The above does not mean that you and your spouse cannot disagree or have arguments during the divorce. It just means that you could find a way to keep these adult conversations away from the children. Your child may need to know the basic details about how life is changing, but they don’t need to be involved in these in-depth discussions.
Let them ask questions
You may also want to have conversations about divorce with your children where you let them talk to you and ask whatever questions are on their mind. Do what you can to provide useful answers. Often, children have questions that parents don’t even think of because they don’t see them as that important – such as whether or not they’ll still get to see their friend in the neighborhood. But children are often very stressed by these questions and the answers can help them tremendously.
As you move toward your divorce and dividing up custody, you want to be sure you know what legal steps to take. Reach out for legal help today.
