Florida mothers who are going through a divorce may be concerned about how it will affect their young children. There are a number of things they can do to help them through this difficult process.
Managing your emotions
It is not uncommon for mothers to take care of everyone but themselves. However, dealing with your emotions and finding people you can talk to about them, whether they are friends, family members or professionals, will better equip you to help your children cope with their own difficult feelings.
Working with the co-parent
While it is not always possible, the ideal situation is being able to cooperate with the other parent, including sitting down together to talk to the children about the divorce and reassure them that they are loved. Even if you are unable to work with the other parent to this extent, you can avoid talking badly about them in front of the children or using the children to convey information back and forth between the two of you. As much as possible, your children should be protected from parental conflict.
Encourage communication
Encouraging your children to communicate might not yield a lot of response initially. Some children may act out in other ways, having problems in school or with friends. Making an effort to disrupt their lives as little as possible and helping them maintain a strong relationship with the other parent can help. You may want to seek a shared child custody arrangement to support this relationship.
Divorce is rarely easy, particularly when children are involved. You should take the steps that are in the best interests of the child. Aside from exceptional situations in which the child is not safe with the other parent, this usually means trying to function as co-parents despite the end of the marriage.