The Divorce Workbook for Teens: Activities to Help You Move Beyond the Break Up
Language: English
Pages: 200
ISBN: 1572245999
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
It's tough being a teen, even in the best of circumstances. But when parents divorce, teens are faced with an additional set of practical and emotional issues. This book gives them everything they need to get through their parents' divorce and keep it from taking a long-term emotional toll.
In this book, teens will learn how to:
- cope with the grief, fear, and anger that accompany divorce
- adjust to having two homes and changes in financial status
- assert their right to be teens, to separate from their parents' problems, and to love both parents
- not get caught in the middle of battling parents
- understand that the divorce is not their fault and overcome feelings of guilt
Research tells us that teenagers in single-parent families and in blended families are 3 times more likely to need psychological help and that boys are more likely to become aggressive and girls are more likely to experience depression as a result of divorce. While this sounds like a grim picture, it's important to remember that there is help and that divorce need not leave a painful legacy. The Divorce Workbook for Teens helps teenagers come through their parent's divorce emotionally and psychologically intact.
were normal—everyone in the family was having them. There was a huge change in their lives. They had all lost something that they believed in, and it was hard to find a peaceful way to think about it. The next weekend, Curtis and his brothers and his dad talked more about the way the divorce was affecting their lives. They shared their feelings and thoughts. Curtis was relieved to find out his older brother was confused, too. Curtis’s dad said they would feel better if they identified what was
maybe if she made a really nice dinner when her mom got home from work, and put candles on the table and played soft music and called her dad to come over, her parents might have a romantic evening together and fall in love again. Neither Adam nor Danielle had ever heard of anyone who had gotten divorced getting back together again. But Danielle said that sometimes when she was feeling anxious about something in her life, it made her feel better to think about it. Adam said it would probably
tension and stress from your body. Practicing any of these activities can help you cope with and release upsetting feelings about your parents’ divorce. * * * Relaxed stretching is the gentle, sustained movement of lengthening your muscles. When you stretch your muscles, you help dissipate stress chemicals that have built up in your body. You also increase your blood flow and improve your circulation. These changes can help you feel more peaceful, both physically and emotionally. Practicing
this. Describe your plan here. __________________ __________________ __________________ If you are uncomfortable talking to your parent about your feelings, show them this exercise or ask a counselor or other adult to help you. 40 If One Parent Leaves You * * * for you to know Sometimes one parent feels so extremely hurt or emotionally damaged by a divorce, they believe that the only way for them to recover is to escape from their current life. Parents who have few or no
* Jessie’s parents had been going through their divorce process for almost four years. Because they had a lot of property and possessions, because they had four children over a spread of ages, and because they were very bitter and had a hard time agreeing on the divorce terms, the process dragged on and on. Jessie, age thirteen, was the oldest of the siblings. Her sister was ten, and her two brothers were seven and five. All of them had watched their parents argue about the divorce for four