Following a divorce, disagreements about raising children can make co-parenting an exhausting and frustrating experience, not to mention create a stressful environment for your children. Huffpost.com recently provided some expert tips for managing some of the obstacles one might face as a co-parent:
- Do not disparage your ex in front of your children. They may internalize your criticisms of their other parent as a reflection on them, leading to poor self-esteem and other issues. If you have a problem with your ex, address him or her directly.
- If each co-parent sets a different bedtime, make it a lesson in flexibility. Your children will learn to appreciate different rules in other environments.
- When there’s a request for a last-minute schedule change, take a broad view of what’s in your children’s best interests. Consider their ages, workloads and nature of the change. Also, remember that, when you agree to reasonable requests, your ex may return the favor.
- Be willing to relinquish control when the children are with your ex. Treat the co-parenting relationship like a business deal without letting emotions influence your points.
- Don’t try to control how your ex co-parents. Maintain your own style and keep conversations with them about theirs brief and professional.
- Work with your ex to find common ground to reconcile inconsistencies in your co-parenting styles, especially when those inconsistencies are negatively affecting the children.
- Listen without judgement to your children when they talk about their experiences with their other parent. If you want to know about your children’s lives, you need to be willing to hear all of it.
Do you need assistance in a divorce or custody matter? Contact the Albany divorce and family attorneys at LaClair & DeLuca. Call us at (518) 650-8861, or email admin@laclairdeluca.com.