Over the past year, we have all experienced situations that pushed us further apart than united us from political opinions to lockdowns to social distancing. There has been a disconnect of human contact, expression, socialization, and growth that has impacted relationships with friends, family, and our spouses. Nonetheless, what happens when the pressure of a worldwide pandemic is added to the image. Every day changes in relational intricacies because of government orders to protect set up now requires numerous guardians to accept childcare obligations for their kids, wrestle with the disappointments introduced by internet learning as youngsters are self-taught, all while teleworking full-time from a home office. The actual strain of staying hyper-careful about wellbeing and security conventions, seclusion felt because of social removing, and the danger of monetary aftermath can feel overpowering to guardians and strengthen the uneasiness felt by kids previously battling with the exhausting truth of their parent’s possible splitting
We have faced adversity we have never faced before – jobs and income lost, stuck at home with nowhere to go, parents acting as educators while trying to keep up with monthly bills. None of it has been helpful for married couples; in fact, the pandemic has triggered more disagreements, unhappiness, and a desire to escape one’s living situation. This is the new age of separation and divorce. Taking care of a family comes with many challenges; the pandemic heaped a lot more stress on every couple. Stress is a major player in arguments between spouses, and certainly prevalent in the increase in divorces we are seeing right now.
Coping for Financial Reasons
One of the most common reasons unhappy couples stay together, after “doing it for the kids,” is that they cannot afford to split up. Many couples live from paycheck to paycheck, a situation exacerbated by the pandemic. They think first about the difficulty of having enough money to live on their own if not forced to move back in with a parent. But to cross over to their vision of “freedom” and “happiness,” they must first take on the brutal battle of divorce and the financial devastation it comes with. The more passionate the fight, the longer it draws out, and divorce attorneys tend to feed that fire to line their pockets. Couples can literally empty out their savings accounts to pay for the divorce.
Better Options
Divorce litigation, by its very nature, is combative. Each spouse files his or her complaint with the attorney to put forth the best case for a good financial outcome, child custody, etc. It is not a process of working out an agreeable arrangement – it is the furthest thing from it. And sometimes the fight goes far beyond where it started once lawyers have embellished their complaints to gain favor from the judge.
If the couple is on speaking terms and both agree to move forward with a separation agreement or divorce, they can avoid the stress, fighting, and high financial cost of working with an attorney by turning to a mediator. Divorce mediation is an effort by both spouses to work out their differences, one point at a time, with the divorce mediator until they can agree on a contract.
Simply by quelling high emotions, a couple can work through their differences more rapidly and stay focused on the outcome rather than react to arguments or insults. In the event the couple cannot agree because one person or the other refuses to budget, the divorce mediator may refer them to a litigation attorney. But, if the couple can settle things civilly, they can expect to save time, money, reduce stress and make life easier for their children.
