Couples that do not get along but have children will often stay in unhappy marriages because they believe it is in their children’s best interests to have a two-parent household. However, growing up with incompatible parents and a toxic living environment can have long-term consequences for children. An experienced divorce attorney knows all too well how incompatible spouses can negatively impact a child’s upbringing.

How Spousal Conflict Affects Children

When a child grows up in a household with a lot of parental conflict, they often experience frequent and heated arguments, passive aggression, lack of communication, and, unfortunately, in some cases, physical violence. Some common consequences of this environment include:

Distress

When a child is exposed to the people they love most fighting, they naturally become distressed. Children often feel that the conflict is their fault, which might cause trouble sleeping, focus issues, and feelings of stress, anger, fear, sadness, or anxiety.

Mental Health Problems

When children are not given the opportunity to communicate this distress, they may internalize these feelings and stressors. Having parents fight may lead to children struggling with anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, as well as other issues, such as dysmorphia and addiction.

Behavioral Issues

In addition to mental health issues, the distress that children feel can result in aggressive or hostile behavior, delinquency, vandalism, and an inability to socialize. A child often has a more negative outlook on life when growing up in an unstable household.

Feelings of Isolation

The internal challenges a child faces due to watching their parents argue can result in them bottling up their emotions and isolating themselves from their peers. These children, without role models for conflict resolution at home, are also more likely to have poor people problem-solving skills.

Discuss Legal Options for Incompatible Spouses with an Attorney

Children can pick up on shifts in moods and passive-aggressive behavior more than one might think. Additionally, involving your children in your spousal conflict by asking them to communicate something to your spouse may put them in a difficult and distressing position. These little things that you may or may not notice can have long-term impacts on your child.

It may not be in your children’s best interests to stay in an unhappy marriage, since these marriages can often make their upbringing more challenging. If you are considering filing for divorce for your and your children’s sake, the family law attorneys at Moskowitz Law Group are here to help. Give us a call to learn more about what we can do to help.