The break up of families is becoming more widespread. Due to this many young people have no choice but to deal with the pain and uncertainty caused by their parent’s decisions to separate.

They are many reasons for family breakdowns. In some cases parents stay friends however more often than not there is continuous conflict, which could have a negative impact.

Whatever the reason parents split up for, in most cases the children feel many emotions at the loss of the way the family used to be, as a result there is a sense of insecurity about what the future may hold. (Change can be scary for people of all ages).

Unfortunately, when you need the most support and understanding, parents can often be too busy caught up trying to deal with their own issues. The result of this is that you may feel neglected and forgotten.

Questions Asked About Family Breakdown

• What will I do if my parents are hostile towards each other?
• My little brother keeps on asking me if mum and dad will break up?
• I am scared that my parents may break up as they argue over everything.
• My parents never speak to each other.

Many children are worried when their parents argue because they may think that they might break up. If or when parents break up, it could lead to a lot of worries.

• About where you will end up living?
• If you will have to change your school?
• Which parent are you going to live with?
• Will you see the other parent again?

Note: it is not all the time parent’s argue that they split up; sometimes they seek external help such as counselling where they can learn of different ways of relating to each other.