How your Kids will Benefit from a Co-Parenting Apart Relationship 

The process of separating is one of the most difficult things a couple may face. When going through a separation you may feel anger, distrust, grief or a sense of betrayal with the other parent.  

The key to successful co-parenting: Place your child’s needs ahead of your own by separating the personal relationship from your completely new co-parenting relationship.  

Despite how difficult the situation may be, it is important to remember that you are still a family, you just look a little different than before.  

Research has shown that in most cases where parents have separated: 

  1. Children thrive when they feel loved and cared for by both parents 
  1. Children’s well-being is better when both parents have stable and meaningful involvement in their lives 
  1. The strength of a child-parent relationship is affected more by parental commitment, warmth and ability to meet their needs compared to the amount of time spent with a parent.  
  1. Each parent adds different valuable contributions to their child’s development. 
  1. Children develop best with a structured routine with each parent, such as bath time or homework time. 
  1. Children find security in personal possessions (like a favorite stuffed animal) and will shine if supported in bringing personal items back and forth between homes, regardless of who purchased them. 

What are the possible implications for your child? 

Children experience harm when exposed to conflict between their parents. Throughout all the research, this is the most consistent finding. The high conflict between parents increases your child’s risk of anxiety and negatively impacts a child’s healthy development. This includes how you talk about your co-parent when they are not around. 

Partners in BIFF 

B rief 

I nformative 

F riendly 

F irm 

You and your co-parent are partners working together to raise your children for success, apart. How you communicate is the most important aspect of building your co-parenting apart relationship. 

We’re here to help. Did you know Family TLC provides Family Mediation; Our team has the expertise as family professionals to help make lives better as you piece together your family’s future. 

Blog posts are for informational purposes only, and do not constitute legal advice.