The impact of a divorce on your children might last for the rest of their lives. Instead of putting off a divorce until your children are grown and out of the house, your whole family will probably benefit from the decision to divorce if you can do it consciously and compassionately.
Divorce mediation is an invaluable tool for parents who want to protect their children from the worst parts of divorce. Let’s look at why that is.
Mediation reduces conflict between the parents
Children often struggle with divorce because they feel like they have to choose between parents. They may have intense emotional reactions to witnessing parental fights. They may blame themselves or become emotionally distant from their parents because of the things that each parent says about the other in front of them.
Working together in the divorce can drastically reduce how hard it is on the kids. Mediation shields your children from fighting and minimizes the conflict between you two.
Going through mediation means your children won’t have to get involved
For many children who find out their parents plan to divorce, their first question, other than if it is their fault, will be if they have to talk to a judge or in front of the court. The idea that children may have to speak up about their custody preferences during a divorce can be a major source of stress.
When you choose to have a mediated divorce, you completely avoid that issue. You and your spouse directly negotiate to set those terms yourselves. Your children won’t need to have any involvement because the courts won’t be the ones setting the terms.
If concern about your kids is one of your biggest issues about a pending divorce, then mediation is likely a tool that could help your family.