Aggressive. Professional. Effective.

How can parental alienation harm you and your children?

Your children may react to your divorce in a variety of ways. If you begin to notice signs of behavior that seem odd, you may look to your ex-spouse for answers. However, sometimes the problem comes from them.

Dealing with parental alienation, which involves a parent attempting to turn your children against you, can feel like a tough situation.

Sudden change in shared information

According to Psychology Today, school events and fun times with friends, like sleepovers, can suddenly become much harder to talk about with your children. They may seem more secretive or even outright tell you that they do not want to talk to you.

This shift can seem sudden, and you may question where the origin of this change in mood came from. Sometimes, alienating parents try to manipulate children into stopping the flow of communication between them and their other parent.

Hostile behavior and tone

While you may have some instances of disagreements in the past, if you notice a sharp increase in the number of fights you have with your children after they spend time with their other parent, it could be a sign of alienation. Shouting matches and name-calling, along with accusations that you do not love them, are common signs.

Your children may begin to talk a lot about how you cannot do anything right, which are words that your ex-spouse may use to describe you. The goal of your ex-spouse is often to break or weaken the bond between you both. If you notice a lot of the same phrases coming from your children, then it could be a sign of alienation and manipulation.