In a typical mediation session, the parties are often told to focus on their interests in order to work out a solution. They may exchange a provision that they do not care about as leverage for a provision that they do care about. A family mediator in Chicago can explain that parents have a more
What Nobody Tells You About Being an Adult Child of Divorce Right before my parents celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary, an adult close to their relationship told my dad that he needed to get a divorce. That “adult” was none other than me, his then-22-year-old daughter. My dad’s relationship with my mom had started souring
Divorcing a narcissist may be the toughest fight of your life. While your marriage to a narcissist may have seemed like hell, divorcing him/her can be painfully agonizing, making your marriage seem like a walk in the park. Following my recent blog, the #1 Secret to Engaging a Narcissist, I received hundreds of emails from
Maybe “lies” is a bit strong. Maybe you’re more comfortable with the words “myths” or “stories”. I was, when I originally titled this article, but the truth is, there are divorce lies out there. And many people suffer needlessly when they’re trying to recover from divorce as a result of believing these untruths. I suffered
When families “blend” to create stepfamilies, things rarely progress smoothly. Some children may resist changes, while parents can become frustrated when the new family doesn’t function like their previous family. While changes to family structure require adjustment time for everyone involved, these guidelines can help blended families work out their growing pains and live together
Over my many years of specializing in family law I have handled thousands of divorces. These have run from very simple, uncontested matters to complicated cases. Many involve custody and other disputes regarding children. I have also had divorces where people have fought over millions of dollars in assets. The question that I am posing,
Are you stuck in a bitter divorce fight? Couples often get caught up with their perceived injustices in the divorce settlement negotiations. The disdain that they personally have for each other usually just adds fuel to the fire when negotiating. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in what we believe to be right that we
Stay together for the sake of the kids? Generations of miserable parents followed that advice, hoping their sacrifices would pay off for their children in the end. Many still believe that it’s the only option for parents stuck in a dead-end marriage. Based on my own personal experience, I have another perspective. Having been raised
In family law mediation, it is not uncommon to hear the parties question their judgment regarding the difficult decision to proceed with divorce. I am often asked by one of the two individuals sitting in my office, “Don’t you think we make a cute couple?” or, “Aren’t we great together?” These are uncomfortable questions in
Money issues – particularly when you don’t have enough of it – spell stress. Stress can cause marital problems, and marital problems can result in divorce. The correlation between income and divorce isn’t quite that clear cut, however. Although a University of California study indicates that financial problems are directly linked to marital problems, other
