Lauren Love

ISM- Period 6
Frankel, Alan L. "Divorce and Its Effects on Kids - New York Divorce Source." Divorce and Its
Effects on Kids - New York Divorce Source. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Nov. 2015.

Divorce will always have an inevitable effect on children.

However, the severity of the effect is based upon how the divorce is handled.
Parents have the ability to alleviate the the long-lasting psychological scars.
Children normally react to the divorce of their parents with signs or symptoms of distress.
In preschoolers, the reaction to the separation of parents is an increase in attachment and
in fearfulness when separated from the parent or parents.
An example of a preschooler being fearful when separated is when a parent drops them
off at school or daycare, and also at bedtime.
These preschoolers show signs of distress with a change in appetite, sleeping patterns,
and increased tantrums.
Increased tantrums can be attributed to anxiety and anger they have about the situation.
Bed wetting and regression behaviors, such as thumb sucking, are also signs of distress in
preschoolers.
School age children will exhibit more pronounced feelings of anger, sadness, and
Worry.
Some school aged children will act as if they dont care while others might deny the
divorce of their parents and blame themselves for it.
It is a common thought of children to believe that they are the cause of the divorce and
will try to work to get their parents back together which normally does more harm.
The children that are trying to be good tend to become more hostile and aggressive
towards the parents because they are confused as to why the situation is occurring and
dont like that they can not fix it.
This age groups also shows distress through not completing tasks and school work.
Teenagers are more difficult to handle under normal circumstances and will be very
argumentative.
Signs of distress in teenagers include, acting out behaviors, such as running away,
truanting from school, school suspension, physical fighting, trouble with the law, drug
and alcohol abuse, and promiscuity.
Teens can show withdraw from normal activities and depression.
In extreme cases, teens may show a decrease in their eating or sleeping patterns, and
may even express suicidal thoughts.
A majority of distress can be helped and acknowledged by the parents to help the children
along with the process.
Simply by them understanding and talking to their children about the situation can
decrease the effects of distress.

This source gave me a deeper understanding about the possible effects of divorce on children, if
parents do not help them through the process.