Every year, more than 1,000,000 children are involved in a divorce, according to the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service, an outreach program of North Carolina State University. There are numerous factors that determine how children cope with divorce. And as much as they’d like to, parents simply cannot shelter their children completely from the all of the pain of divorce.
What they can do, however, is to try their best to be there emotionally. By helping kids cope with divorce, parents offer them unconditional love and support and keep the focus on a better and happier future.
The more children feel supported, the more children will be able to cope with divorce, and the better the chances are that the children will adjust to the changing family dynamics with fewer emotional scars.
While the following resources are great introductions for children of divorce, if you are dealing with a more volatile situation, such as divorcing an alcoholic spouse, the last resource on therapists perhaps should be your starting point. Below are some resources for children of divorce that parents might find useful.
Resources for Children of Divorce: Youth Books
One of the most effective ways to help children understand and come to terms with the process of divorce is through the written word and picture books. Barr Harris Children’s Grief Center offers a list of recommended books to help children cope with divorce.
You can check your local library or bookstore for some of the suggested titles you think might appeal to your child:
- Young children – Some recommended titles include My Mother’s House, My Father’s House by C.B. Christiansen; Bessie Bump Gets a New Family by Amberley Meredith; Mama and Daddy Bear’s Divorce by Cornelia Maude Spelman; and Always My Dad by Sharon Dennis Wyeth.
- Late elementary and middle schoolers – For this age group, recommended titles include My Dad Lives in a Downtown Hotel by P. Mann; Blue Sky, Butterfly by J. Van-Leeuwen; and What Can I Do? A Book for Children of Divorce by Danielle Lowry.
- Teenagers – It might be a little harder to get teenagers to pick up a book and read it, but you might try “accidentally” leaving a few books around the house for them to happen upon. Two of the recommended titles for teens going through divorce include Yours Truly by Judie Angell and The Divorce Helpbook for Teens by Cynthia MacGregor.
Resources for Children of Divorce: Online Divorce Resources
An Internet search yields many resources for children of divorce.
For instance, you might try:
- PBS Kids’ divorce section under their family tab (it has a handful of topics kids can read, a divorce quiz and offline activities);
- Kids’ Turn Organization (family workshops);
- Videos (e.g., Sesame Street’s What is Divorce? video); and
- Divorce Aid’s My Changing Family leaflets.
Resources for Children of Divorce: Local Support Groups & Divorce Therapists for Children
You can check your local listings for support groups and youth family therapists who help kids cope with divorce.
You can ask your attorney, your pediatrician and the Department of Social Services for referrals. You might also check Psychology Today’s online searchable database for support groups or therapists or DivorceCare for Kids’ (DC4K) website for a group in your area.
Legal Resources for Divorce
If you have legal questions regarding divorce, custody or support, or if you are in need of legal representation in Dallas, we invite you to call our family law attorneys at Warren & Migliaccio.
Contact us at your convenience for a free, no-obligation consultation: 888-634-2614.