When most people go through a divorce, they don’t have to deal with their ex any longer. But, if you have children with your ex, that’s almost certainly not going to be an option. With this in mind, you’ll have to find ways that you can handle your new co-parenting situation as effectively as possible.
Working with your ex will probably not be easy. Preparing for interactions and taking steps to provide the children with stability is going to be important as a result.
Keep the focus on the children
One of the most important things that you have to do is keep the focus on the children. While there might be some negative interactions between you and your ex, it’s typically best to put that aside unless there was abuse or something similar involved.
Communicate with a business-like demeanor
Communication is often a challenging situation for exes. It may behoove you to take emotions out of the situation and treat these interactions as business interactions. There’s a chance that some conversations will be contentious, so knowing how to handle those is critical. It may be best to take a step back when this happens. But, no matter what happens, never try to make the children pass on messages between you and your ex.
Give children opportunities
Compromise between co-parents can help children to have as many opportunities as possible. For example, being willing to let your children spend time with your ex’s out-of-town family members when they come into town, even if it’s your weekend, might be beneficial for the kids.
Set mutual rules and goals
While it doesn’t mean that you need to have all the same rules between both households, some of the bigger ones, such as curfew or bedtime, might be best if they’re the same in both homes. This reduces the amount of adjusting the kids have to go through when they move from one home to the other.
Follow your parenting plan
Your parenting plan is what governs the relationship you have with your ex related to the children. Getting this in order can be a complex undertaking, but having a legal representative on your side may make this set up less difficult and more effective overall.
Co-parenting is rarely an easy journey. But, there are things you can do to make it a more manageable situation.