Parents take great pride in providing and caring for their children. Why, then, when parents are involved in divorce litigation, do they forget about the children? Decades of psychological studies point to a major factor in determining the impact of divorce on children; the level of cooperation vs. level of conflict between the divorcing parents. Florida defaults to shared parental responsibility. This means that even though the couple is no longer Husband and Wife, they are forever Mom and Dad.
The focus then for the parents is on the children, and how as parents they can continue to provide a stable environment, education and health care for them.
Cooperative parents engaged in healthy, effective co-parenting cause less stress on their children. Unfortunately, parents that are focused on each other and not their children are unable or unwilling to co-parent, and it is this increased level of conflict between the parents that trickles down to and detrimentally affects their children. Do your children a service; if conflict is an issue, seek the help of a professional mental health provider. Invest in your children and their continued and future happiness and attend co-parenting counseling.