The conversation with your children, telling them that you and your spouse are getting divorced, is likely not going to be easy. But it’s also necessary. You need to make sure that they understand what types of changes are coming.
Naturally, you want to make this go as smoothly as you can. Here are a few tips that may help as you talk to them.
Give them enough time to talk
The big thing to remember is that they’re going to be concerned about different things and they’re going to have a lot of questions. Make sure that you allow them to ask these questions and feel like they’re really part of the conversation.
Plan it as a family meeting
You don’t want to go from one child to the next, having one-on-one conversations. That risks one of your children finding out about the divorce from someone else. Instead, you’re better off having a family meeting where you and your spouse talk to them together.
Try to create a united front
Obviously, you and your spouse don’t really feel like a united front as you move toward divorce. But it’s often best for the children if they see it that way. For instance, rather than blaming either one of you for the divorce, you want to present this as a choice that you’ve come to together.
Creating a child custody plan
Talking to your children about the upcoming divorce is just the first step to take. You clearly have their best interests in mind, and you need to know how to address those things when you’re creating a child custody plan. Be sure you know about all of your legal options and the parental rights that you have.