When a separation or divorce involves children, working together as "Co-Parents" is in your children’s best interest. On-going communication between parents for the purposes of exchanging important information, making decisions, and resolving conflicts needs to be managed.
Building a strong Co-Parenting relationship with your former spouse minimizes the negative impact of divorce on your children, and is healthier for you.
Research reveals that it is not separation per se that creates life-time scars for children, but rather their experience of being caught between the destructive forces of two resentful and deeply wounded parents.
Fortunately, parents can acquire the practical skills to secure the structure, certainty and peace necessary to move beyond past hurt, and model the healthy resolution of conflict for their children.
Most couples need guidance through the separation process and beyond.
Through Relationships Work’s Co-Parenting with Heart program Bob Hollander, mediator, attorney and counselor, and Lori Hollander, mediator and counselor, help spouses build amicable co-parenting relationships.
When separated parents work together, children will:
- Adapt to the separation more quickly
- Feel their world is more secure and predictable
- Have a greater sense of self worth
- Focus on their own developmental, academic and peer issues rather than on the struggle between two angry parents
- Learn to face and work through conflict
- Understand that their parents separation does not mean that they are losing either parent
When you Co-Parent with your ex-partner, you will:
- Protect your children from emotional harm
- Build a more trusting relationship with your children
- Parent more effectively and be able to reach joint decisions
- Have more consistent routines and rules between households
- Avoid the chronic conflict and anxiety that results when parents cannot communicate
- Be more able to accept the separation and move on with your life
Bob and Lori work as a team with Co-Parents to help them develop skills to communicate effectively, manage conflict and make collaborative decisions. To learn more about Co-Parenting with Heart, click here.