Life consists of many unpleasant life-altering changes. We accept job offers that we wouldn’t normally accept because we have to eat and pay bills. We walked around with a bad hairstyle for several months because the chosen beautician made a mistake. In relationships, the “man of our dreams” turns out to be the monster under the bed. We move on from these unwanted areas in our lives with the hope of a better future. However, what happens when an unwanted life form affects our children? What if you’ve been married for more than five years and in the blink of an eye you’re a single parent? Within this single-parent lifestyle, your children must live in two different households. Their children now reside in two different households due to joint custody.

This transition from having both parents under one roof to living under two separate roofs may not be an easy process for children from broken homes. Regardless of age, these children will rebel against any provocation. They experience depression and often feel anxious about everyday events. Withdrawn and unhappy, children within the joint custody setting are drawn to both extremes. Can they show loyalty to both parents without betraying one? Their only hope is that their parents don’t get divorced, and they repeatedly verbalize this desire with the demand, “Why can’t they stay together?”

This question is valid. When you witness firsthand what kids go through when their parents get divorced, you can’t help but wonder why this couple should split up. Children go through so much during a divorce that parents should consider staying together. Of course, this is not a hobby to stay married to an abusive partner. Instead, it is a suggestion for reconsideration, an encouragement to work harder to stay married, to maintain a safe and uninterrupted environment for children.

There will be times when divorce is unavoidable and joint custody occurs. Since children can easily become victims, both parents need to make sure that they minimize the painful process. Parents must put aside their differences, their animosity, their anger, their resentment and work together for the good of the children.

Read more about what happens to children when their parents refuse to settle their differences. Understand the joint custody process and see its effects on children as they learn to operate in two separate homes. Draw your own conclusions about whether it is better to stay married for the children.