Talking to your kids about an upcoming divorce in Virginia, or anywhere else, can be difficult regardless of their ages. However, it can be especially challenging to tell a teenager about your plans to end your marriage. Fortunately, there are steps that you can take to make this process easier on yourself and your kids.
Focus on the potential upsides
Your teen is likely old enough to see what a toxic marriage can do to a person. Therefore, you can focus on the fact that your divorce is going to allow you to be a happier person and a better parent. You can also focus on the fact that your teen will now have an opportunity to spend more quality time with each parent as custody or visitation time will likely be evenly divided.
Not everything will change
After a divorce, it’s not uncommon for parents and children to do things together such as engage in family game nights or going to a baseball game. You can also emphasize that your teen might stay in the same school district or even in the same house for the foreseeable future. Therefore, your kid won’t have to lose relationships with friends, a spot on the football team or a job just because your marriage ended. By keeping changes to a minimum, your older child may find it easier to deal with the evolution of their family unit.
Your child’s needs should be a top priority before, during and after a divorce is official. This includes making it clear that your child did nothing to cause the divorce and providing all of the resources necessary to help your child cope with this transition.