Divorce and Children: Things To Consider When Youre Staying Married Only For Your Children

Home
>
Divorce
>
Divorce and Children: Things To Consider When Youre Staying Married Only For Your Children

Divorce and Children: Things To Consider When Youre Staying Married Only For Your Children

All children are different and respond differently to divorce. Depending on the characteristics of the children - age, emotional maturity, happiness, resiliency to trauma - the easier or more difficult it will be for children to weather a divorce.

As a parent, you should know your children better than anyone...use your best judgment with your children during considering divorce. This "divorce and children" article is for parents who are certain that they would get a divorce if they didn't have children and want to decide what to think about regarding the effects a divorce would have on their children.

Children of divorced parents can actually live wonderful lives as long as the parents use proper judgment and create the right types of interactions between themselves and with each other.

This article on this web page does not suggest that divorce is the correct course of action for you and it in no way should be taken as a form of counseling to you. This article is merely to spark you to think logically and then make your own decision about divorce and your children.

As previously stated, every child is different and subsequently, every child responds to divorce in a different way.

If you think there's a definitive answer about how divorce affects children, you are mistaken. There's been hundreds of books written about this subject and a plethora of studies done regarding divorce and children, all citing differing opinions and using different statistical constraints and inputs. But, statistics can only go so far...if you know your children better than anyone else, you will know best how they'll be affected by a divorce.

How divorce affects children and what you should do if you're staying married solely because you have children is complicated issue.

Here's some things you may want to consider if you're a parent who is staying married just because you have children:

Children and divorce consideration 1: Make sure that you are, in fact, only staying married just because you have children.

Often times people use the children as an excuse not to get a divorce because they aren't really sure that they want a divorce or have some other fear regarding divorce. Those fears can be present due to finance, self-confidence, living arrangements, or other personal issues.

Before you really take the next steps in deciding whether or not to get a divorce because of your children, rank your reasons for divorce and make sure that you're really certain you'd get a divorce if you didn't have children.

Children and divorce consideration 2: Make sure 'guilt' isn't the real reason that you aren't getting a divorce.

The 'guilt' referenced above is the guilt brought on by thinking that your divorce will hurt your children. In and of itself, this feeling of guilt is a selfish one if you haven't really examined carefully if a divorce will have an adverse effect on your children. If you aren't getting divorced because of guilt in this regard, but you still have an unhappy marriage that is affecting your children, then you aren't really staying married for them, you're staying married for you because you feel guilty...this is selfish.

Children and divorce consideration 3: Once you've clearly defined that you are in fact, not getting a divorce solely because you have children, examine why you think divorce will adversely affect your children.

Remember, divorce can have a negative effect on children initially, but that doesn't necessarily mean that a divorce will be a negative influence on your children forever.

Decide whether or not your children have the resiliency, the intelligence, the emotional health, and the support they'd need to mitigate the adverse effects that a divorce would have on them. Will they be happy after the initial shock of the divorce is worked through?

Children and divorce consideration 4: Once you've really defined what you believe to be negative effects on your children due to divorce, think about what your children's life will be like in the immediate and distant future if you do actually go through with the divorce.

Ask yourself, "Can I create and maintain a healthy environment for my children if I do get a divorce?"

One thing that is a critical factor in this decision is the feasibility of you and your spouse getting a divorce amicably. If you and your spouse can go through a divorce amicably, and you both can agree to always put your children's welfare above your own, you will be one step ahead.

Again, make sure you are certain a divorce is necessary to create the right type of environment for your children. Assure that there is absolutely no way you can rekindle your marriage.

Usually, divorce represents the first real trauma of a child's life. Keep this in mind when your making your divorce decision. Divorce is a serious step and nothing should be done until your're certain that divorce is the best course of action. Getting a divorce without making sure that divorce is the right thing is selfish on your part and is the wrong thing to do to your children...after all, they deserve your best effort!

One thing should remain constant...that you and your spouse will always be there for your children, no matter what.

Karl Augustine, Author of "A Practical Guide To Deciding Whether Or Not To Get A Divorce".
Deciding on Divorce
Children and Divorce

In The News:

Elon Musk And How Divorce Prepares Kids To Be Entrepreneurs
Forbes
The last time Musk was in the news this much was two years ago, when divorce proceedings with his first wife, Justine, threatened the Tesla Motors' IPO. While details of that divorce occupied the media's attention, it's likely that his parents' divorce ...

The Halakhic Prenuptial Agreement: A Responsible Solution to the Jewish ...
Huffington Post (blog)
The agunah or agun (literally bound woman or bound man) is the result of a situation where either spouse in a marriage refuses to accept a divorce and quite actually binds the other person in an unwanted marriage unable to begin anew the next chapter ...

and more »

Zee News
Third of all divorces cite Facebook
12NewsNow.Com
A third of all divorce filings in 2011 contained the word "Facebook," according to Divorce Online. And more than 80 percent of US divorce attorneys say social networking in divorce proceedings is on the rise, according to the American Academy of ...
Facebook causing a third of all divorces: SurveyZee News
Marriage may be disliking FacebookNECN
Facebook, a home-breaker: UK surveyFirstpost
newjerseynewsroom.com -Deseret News
all 22 news articles »

Divorce and family mediation seminar offered
Houston Chronicle
Lone Star Corporate College is presenting the seminar as part of the Lone Star College Networking Lunch Series. It runs from 11 am to 1 pm June 7 at the Lone Star Community Building, 5000 Research Forest Drive, The Woodlands.

and more »

Helping Children Cope with Divorce
Sacramento Bee
By Miami Children's Hospital MIAMI, May 23, 2012 -- /PRNewswire/ -- Divorce can be a stressful time, not only for the separating spouses, but also for the children who depend on them. This transition may include moving homes, splitting time between ...

and more »

Marketplace.org
Euro leaders plan for Greece to 'divorce' the euro
Marketplace.org
Brancaccio: Greece leaving the euro is being likened to a divorce. How much would a divorce cost Europe? Walker: That's enormously difficult to estimate in terms of the wider economic cost because you are dealing with an unpredictable financial market ...
Euro zone to prepare for Greek exit scenario -sourcesReuters
Decision needed now on whether Greeks keep euroBelfast Newsletter
Leaders Bicker as Europe's Crisis Gains New UrgencyNew York Times
Fox Business -Malta Business Weekly
all 6,644 news articles »

Led Zeppelin II, who changed his name from George Blackburn after divorce ...
Chicago Tribune
BETHALTO, Ill. (AP) — Led Zeppelin II, who was known as George Blackburn for most of his life, changed his name last fall after a divorce. His daughter, Mindy Baker of Seattle, says Zeppelin, who died Friday at age 64 of a heart attack, wanted to ...
Led Zeppelin II RIPantiMUSIC.com
Led Zeppelin II Has DiedUltimate Classic Rock
Led Zeppelin II Dies at 64: Man Who Changed Name to Favorite AlbumAllMediaNY

all 29 news articles »

Divorce Questions: Should We Stay Together For The Kids?
Huffington Post
Too many therapists think they have the easy answer whether to stay because divorce is often destructive to children or leave because if the parents are happier, the children will be better off. The facts speak for themselves. Divorce wreaks havoc on ...

DigitalJournal.com
Man divorces his wife due to her 550 cats in their home
Examiner.com
A man advised the Rabbinical Court in Beersheba that he had to get a divorce from his wife due to her hundreds of cats she brought into the home as pets. He said that the cats blocked access to the bathroom, did not allow him to prepare meal, ...
Reason for divorce: wife kept 550 cats in their homeDigitalJournal.com
I know you have a comment about this one ….READ and POST ITGretawire (blog)

all 4 news articles »

When divorce occurs, don't punish the father
Fredericksburg.com
Here is the reality: Tensions stemming from harsh economic times are causing the highest divorce rate in decades. Moreover, the further splitting of household incomes creates further stress, which leads to testy divorce and custody battles.

Google News