Societal expectations have changed quite a bit over a relatively short period of time, especially when it comes to family and parenting. Fathers in Illinois now play much larger roles in their children’s lives than their own fathers did. This shift has also nudged more and more families toward joint child custody, with each parent taking on 50% of parenting time. Unfortunately, some experts believe that shared custody, social media and even mistruths are causing conflict between divorcing parents.
Social media has become a place for airing grievances, venting and sharing a little too much information. While this might be the new norm for a lot of people, parents who are going through a divorce should avoid posting about their ex-spouses as much as possible. This is partly because kids today are pretty tech savvy and can easily access that information. The non-profit organization Kids In the Middle recently reported seeing a big increase in how many families they are helping through high-conflict transitions, and social media is just one of the reasons why.
Divorces are also getting more contentious because of accusations of substance abuse or serious mental illnesses. However, many of these are unfounded. These assertions are usually for the benefit of the parent hoping to secure more parenting time or even primary custody.
When divorcing parents engage in these behaviors, they are forgetting about the most important thing — their child’s well being. Instead the child custody agreement becomes about them, focusing on their own wants rather than what their child really and truly needs. It can be very frustrating to be the parent who has to deal with an ex’s poor behavior, but it is not a hopeless situation. Learning more about one’s rights by speaking with an attorney who is knowledgeable in Illinois family law might be very helpful.
