How To Get Through the First Holiday During Your Divorce

The first time you go through the holidays during a divorce can be an agonizing experience. All the traditions and schedules you have created feel like they have been turned upside down and left in pieces in your heart.

Experts feel the emotions you feel during a marital separation can be similar to what people feel about losing a loved one. It’s grueling at times. The waves of emotions wash in and out like the tide and are unpredictable as the weather.

To work through these emotions, we always offer our collaborative divorce clients an opportunity to speak with a mental health expert experienced in dealing with the emotions that divorce often brings.

Here are a few suggestions we share with our clients on how to make it through their first holiday while experiencing divorce:

• Focus on others – it’s healing for the soul
• Be open to experiencing new traditions – adventure awaits you!
• Surround yourself with friends and family who encourage you – dividing grief helps to dissolve it
• Stop taking yourself on a guilt trip – it doesn’t help you move forward after your divorce
• Co-parent with your ex in a way your children do not have to choose sides
• Lower your expectations and simplify your holiday routines – it’s okay if your home doesn’t rise to Pinterest’s expectations
• Make a holiday sharing plan early in the summer with your ex – planning gives structure and routine to everyone

During your divorce proceedings, your emotional and financial landscape changes in ways you could have never imagined. Still, when you utilize these tips, you will be able to walk firmly on the road to healing from your divorce.

When you utilize the experts in the Los Angeles Collaborative Family Law Association, you can let down your anxiety and stress because you will know that when your divorce is finalized, each party involved, including your children, will be ready to face the future with confidence.

Call us today if you would like to learn more about how our Los Angeles Collaborative Family Law Association members can help you and your family through your divorce!