Effects Of Divorce On Children

Facts of a divorce can be really hard not to children alone but to all the parties involved. Never the less is hardest on young children who have to try and cope with living with one parent and not seeing the other quite often. The magnitude of effect will also differ with children and age. Some children may be hardy and will not be devastated by fact that their parents are separated. This does not mean that it will not affect their lives in any way but the effect may not be dealt with easily and with little guidance. Age is what makes all the difference. Children at the age between 5 and 8 are not likely to understand what a divorce is. They want to see both their parents around them and would not take anything than that. For those at the age of 9 to 15, they understand what a divorce. Often they express their disappointment and some even take sides.

Physical changes

When parents divorce, a lot of things change for the children. They move to a new home and spend more time with one parent. At times they are forced to change schools and worst cope with having to change homes most of the time. This affects the children way of playing, more so if they are separated from the parent that they enjoy a lot of company with. Some are unable to eat or even sleep well. Young ones may have sleeping disorders and bad night mares that they may not be able to sleep alone. They never feel secure anymore and their minds get disturbed a lot. During this time, disciplining the child may only make things worse. The best thing you can do as the parent is to try to create a comfortable environment. You can then try to make the child understand what is going on and promise them that things will be okay.

Emotional changes

In all cases children get angry because of divorce. This is understandable as it is a child’s way of reaction when they face obstacles. Some children will get the altitude of acting and you may never get the true picture of what they feel. Others will move out of the home and may be hook up with bad company just to let off some heat. At this point the best thing you can do is to understand your child. You then engage them in a good manner and try to teach them how to deal with anger. You can also use art to dig out their feelings. Engaging them in games also work greatly.