Co-Parenting and Joint Custody Tips for Divorced Parents
Co-parenting and allowing children to have both parents remain active in their lives is one way through which you can protect the wellbeing of your children. Whilst co-parenting can be beneficial in this way, the quality of the relationship between parents can influence the mental and emotional wellbeing of children.
Even after an amicable divorce, sharing decisions and interacting with each other can present new challenges for newly single parents. Here we have some tools that you can use to try and co-parent peacefully.
Work on your relationship with your ex
Having a relationship with your ex after a divorce can be difficult and it can be hard to repair a relationship that has been tarnished by conflict. In order to have a successful co-parenting relationship it is fundamental that you repair this relationship.
Apologising for any sources of tension within your relationship can be a good place to start. Clearing the air and resolving past tensions can provide a clean slate from which you can commence a co-parenting relationship with ease.
Asking your ex for their opinion on simple matters is one way through which you can work at rebuilding trust in your relationship.
Avoid putting children in the middle
Communicating with an ex may not be easy and it may be tempting to use a middle messenger to avoid contact. Whilst this may be tempting and you may think that this will improve your communication with your partner, in reality it can burden your children with unnecessary anxiety. It can also compromise your child's relationship with the other parent.
Prioritise consistency
Having varying expectations at different homes can lead to confusion amongst your children. As they become accustomed to acting a certain way at each home and with each parent they can begin to have varying ideas of what is expected of them.
Some ways to combat this issue include having rules that are generally consistent across both households. This will provide them with stability and a general sense of what is acceptable behaviour from them.
Having a similar sense of how to discipline your children when they break set rules also ensures that children learn to respect the boundaries of both parents and are less likely to harbour feelings of resentment towards one parent for not being as lenient as the other.
Employing these tips are some ways through which you can work on co-parenting successfully and put your child first in your family.