Co-Parenting Remains Challenging for Some Parents After Divorce

December 04, 2012 (Press-News.org) Deciding to get a divorce is a life-changing process. It can be a very emotionally draining time for all parties involved. Couples may fight over property or custody of the children. These court battles can become lengthy and only add to the stress. For divorcing couples that have children, they will need to work with one another as they share custody of the children.

This can be a very challenging issue for some couples. If the divorce contained a lot of anger, it can be difficult for parties to move past these feelings. Children may be in the middle of a fight between two people who no longer love each other. Agreements about child custody and visitation made during the divorce may be broken in an effort to get back at the other spouse.

Does technology help co-parents communicate after divorce?

When communication becomes impossible, parties will still need to find a way to make it work for the kids. Some couples will limit their contact to e-mail or text messaging in an effort to limit face-to-face interactions. This helps discussions stay focused on the children and the issues that need to be resolved, and prevents them from turning into other arguments.

A recent study examined whether this type of communicating between exes was an effective way to deal with co-parenting challenges. Scientists at the University of Missouri questioned 49 parents about how they communicated with their former spouse after the divorce.

Differing responses to communication technology

Some spouses had working relationships after a divorce, while others had difficulty trying to maintain a positive relationship. Those that were able to work with an ex-spouse used many different tools to help with child custody issues. Some used online calendars that would allow each spouse to see who would be spending time with the child each day. This could help ensure that if one parent was supposed to pick the child up from school, the parent could be there on his or her scheduled day.

Parents that worked well together also used e-mail to communicate important events to one another. If the child was involved in after school activities, parents would be able to remind one another about games or plays that may be happening.

However, parents that did not get along had very different responses when asked about technology. These parents still used e-mail or online calendars, but if often led to problems between the ex-spouses. Some would use these systems to try to control or manipulate the other party, which led to relationships deteriorating.

If you are considering getting a divorce, speak with an experienced family law attorney in your area. It might be tempting to just agree to your spouse's demands to get the matter behind you, but the decisions you make now may be impossible to change in the future. You need to know what to do to protect your interests during this difficult time.

Article provided by Baker Billick, P.A.
Visit us at www.bakerlawfirmpa.com