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24/7 HelplineDivorce is never easy on the children, no matter how old they are. Children and teens of divorce do not always have problems, nor are the problems they do have necessarily a result of their parents’ decisions. But divorced families do face many challenges. Almost half of U.S. marriages end in divorce, so there are millions of youth growing up in these circumstances.
Divorce signifies the end of the family unit as it was, so grief over the loss is expected. For teens, the loss can be very destabilizing and create emotional responses. Strong feelings of insecurity, anxiety, sadness, guilt, embarrassment and anger are normal but can easily overwhelm a young person.
Risks And Protective Factors
Some children develop resilience as a result of overcoming the adversity, while others get caught in a downward spiral of despair. Many known factors contribute to how children adjust to the adversity of divorce. Certain factors increase risk for problems, while others serve as a form of protection.
Some factors have to do with the child, such as temperament, cognitive level and coping skills. Others relate to the family environment, such as parenting style, sibling relationships and socioeconomic status. Still others pertain to the child’s external environment, such as school, friends and community. Generally speaking, the more children are able to externalize their emotions in a positive manner, the better they do.
