Divorce doesn’t just affect younger kids, here’s how it challenges adults as well.

Conventional wisdom suggests that getting divorced when your children are adults makes for an easier transition and adjustment for the family than divorcing when the children are younger. This may be true in many cases, and in many different aspects. It is for this reason many couples who aren’t happy in their marriages will choose to stay together longer. However, adult children of divorce do not escape the effects of the end of their parent’s marriage.

Here are 4 unique ways adult children are affected by divorce:

1. Adult Children Know Their Lives Will be More Difficult

Adult children are more mature and tend to think ahead as to how their lives will be affected by their parent’s divorce. They’re very aware that many things will be different. Holidays, birthdays and other special occasions will now be celebrated separately with both parents. Celebrating two Thanksgivings instead of one requires additional time out of their lives as they try to juggle between their jobs, travel, and spending equal time with both of their parents, neither of which they want to suffer hurt feelings. Weddings and the birth of grandchildren will present new challenges, especially if their parents do not get along. For adult children, feeling sentimental about their childhoods can also come into play as they are aware they will only see both of their parents together again a handful of times. 

2. Adult Children Can Feel Compelled to Take Sides

If the parents engage in conflict and blame each other for the divorce, adult children can sometimes feel compelled to take sides. They may join and defend one parent and blame the other. Sometimes the children are split and take different sides creating a rift in their relationships. The fallout of divorce within a nuclear family can create tremendous strain in all aspects of their lives and relationships.

– Jamie Daniel

Read More: 4 Unique Ways Divorce Affects Adult Children

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