Living with someone who’s an alcoholic isn’t easy, especially for children. Alcoholism can cause a person to become unreliable. They may lie constantly and try to blame others for their actions. Children don’t really understand what’s going on. They only know that one of their parents is letting them down.
For some alcoholics, the call to get sober becomes so strong that they go through rehab and stop drinking. They might be excited to try to rebuild their relationship with their children, but this shouldn’t happen too quickly.
Focus on the best interests of the children
If your co-parent is a recovering alcoholic, you have to do what you can to keep the kids safe. This might mean that you or someone else needs to supervise the visits between your ex and your child. You may have to discuss the situation with your kids so they understand what’s going on with their other parent. This needs to be done in an age-appropriate manner but make sure that you keep things based on reality.
People can overcome alcoholism
While it’s easy to always associate your ex with their alcoholism, you should remember that it’s possible to overcome it. If your ex is living a sober life, you can’t hold their alcoholism against them. Instead, just pay attention to what’s going on so you know if there’s something amiss again.
Every parent that’s separated from their child’s other parent should have a parenting plan in place to govern what happens with the child. Getting this together quickly after the split is critical since it enables everyone to get on the same page about raising the kids. Having someone on your side who can help you work on the terms of the parenting plan is crucial.