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Divorce With Dignity is a divorce facilitation service with the goal of getting people through their divorce in a holistic, cooperative, peaceful, and cost-effective way. One of the benefits we offer our clients is referrals for additional services they may need to make the divorce a smoother transition. For example, some clients may be in situations where they have a need to seek therapy or counseling during the divorce process. In these cases, we refer them to professionals like Susan...

Divorce is the second greatest life stressor after the death of a loved one.

People experience the stages of grief and loss in much the same way:
Denial / Anger / Bargaining / Guilt / Depression / Acceptance.

These stages of grief are experienced differently in divorce. Often one person (the initiator) wants the divorce. The other (the recipient) might want the marriage to continue. The initiator may feel more of the guilt and responsibility. The recipient may cycle between bargaining and...

Families don’t end in divorce- they change. There’s a lot of adjustment. Sometimes figuring out how to share parenting responsibilities brings up old issues from the marriage. Despite this, it is important that you both put your kids’ needs first.

Co-parenting Counseling helps parents restructure time. You will learn to adjust to custody arrangements and how to set up space in each home to make kids feel secure. You will also learn to set healthy boundaries so everyone feels...

During a separation process parents‚ personality differences get magnified
– especially when deciding the custody of their children.

Disappointment, depression, anxiety, and anger are normal at this time. Different personality types express these feelings in different ways. Understanding what’s underneath the behavior can help you find empathy for yourself and your child’s other parent.

Problem Solvers: This type fends for and protects their children more than they...

When there is personality conflict,
it’s invaluable to have the help of a neutral third party
– someone who understands how divorce impacts everyone,
including parents and kids.

Co-parent Counseling benefits include:

• Keeping focused on the children
• Understanding kids’ developmental needs
• Helping kids adjust to the transition
• Providing a neutral and emotionally safe place for parents to create a new relationship, based on the best interests of their kids.

Co-parent Counseling...

Giving and receiving is essential in long-term adult relationships.

But in some instances it can feel like one person gives too much. In healthy relationships, each person is in charge of their needs, emotions and responses. It’s okay to say no – even if the other person gets disappointed. And it’s okay to get disappointed. It doesn’t mean the other person has to feel guilty or change their mind.

Signs that you’re out of balance:

• You give all the time in your...

Transformations and changes are showing up in my divorce support groups!

My divorce support groups that begin as eight-week series often evolve into groups of people who continue on by joining the next session, and then extend their participation with series after series. The reasons are varied, but most of them feel that getting to the next level of healing is right around the corner, and they are motivated to keep working toward that goal. In the past month I have been hearing so many...

Now What?

Well, you’ve come to the decision that you have to divorce and you really want to get through this as peacefully as possible without spending your life savings. Just remember that as long as you and your spouse are in agreement, you can pretty much do whatever you want—it’s just a matter of figuring out the best strategy to get through the court system. Here are some things you can do to avoid litigation and get your process through your local court system.

First...

Divorce almost always entails a lot of negative emotions and consequences. It’s difficult to see anything positive in it. But it actually can be an opportunity for you to transform your life on an emotional level and change your lifestyle for the better. When intense things happen in our lives they often cause us to have to change radically.

Patterns that may have been formed long ago can keep us re-creating the same scenarios, even when they are not healthy positions for us. When these...

There are 7 stages of grief and loss that you will experience when going through separation.

The universal stages of grief and loss that are most recognizable are: denial/sadness, depression, anger, bargaining, and acceptance.

There are two other stages of grief that a person goes through during separation of a major relationship. It’s hard to look at the last two stages when you are deep and raw in grief.

The sixth stage is recovering from the damage caused by the relationship and...