Single Parent Problems: Tips on How to Deal With High Conflict Exes

There are times when, no matter how hard you try to keep things peaceful, your ex just seems to be doing everything to make you feel miserable. It can come in many different ways: he/she could accuse you of not doing your parenting job properly, throw your faults back at you, or even repeatedly intrude in your personal affairs. With high conflict exes continuously pushing your buttons, your life can become downright stressful. It is important to remember that your ex is probably trying to hold on to the past to avoid having to deal with the present. That doesn’t mean, however, that you should let yourself be drawn to this direction as well. Here are some pointers to consider when confronted with a high-conflict ex.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/07/13/single-parent-problems-tips-on-how-to-deal-with-high-conflict-exes/

Dealing with Exes: Staying Friends with the Ex-Family After Divorce?

Some people say that when you marry someone, you also marry his/her family. What happens, however, if you and your partner decide to separate? Does it also mean that you’re also “divorcing” your ex’s family? Is it a good idea to keep in touch with your ex-family? Dealing with exes alone is difficult enough, but when you add the parents and siblings into the picture, things could get confusing and stressful at every turn, so here are a few things to keep in mind: Past Relationship How was your past relationship with your ex in-laws? If you had a great relationship with them then, perhaps, you shouldn’t let your divorce ruin the friendship.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/07/09/dealing-with-exes-staying-friends-with-the-ex-family-after-divorce/

Stepparenting Help: The Dilemma of Being Yourself and a Stepparent

Even if having a step mom or dad is fairly common, and it has become nearly prevalent for people to have stepfamilies, it can be quite difficult to navigate these waters in the beginning, and it would largely help that the new spouse and the new family learn to help each other integrate more smoothly and gently into each other’s lives. Stepparents often have to deal with existing conflicts with their exes, as well as legal wrangling over child custody and support. Any new major change in life situations need adjustments, and managing these new situations with a stepfamily can be very stressful.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/07/06/stepparenting-help-the-dilemma-of-being-yourself-and-a-stepparent/

Resolving Old Conflicts: Single Parents Getting Ready to Date Again

For some single parents, it takes time to be ready to start dating again. Many of them simply have too much on their plate that they can’t find the time to do so. They feel that before they even invite someone into their lives again, lingering issues will have to be resolved first, especially the ones with their ex-spouse, and the complicated and stressful details of alimony, child support, and custody. Resolving Old Conflicts You may have gone through a difficult divorce, or you may have been widowed. You may have an ex that has lately been making it hard for you to move on, and start life anew. The stresses in your life can add up that it is easy to feel frustrated and frightened.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/07/03/resolving-old-conflicts-single-parents-getting-ready-to-date-again/

Common Single Parent Problems and the Best Ways to Deal with Them

Coping with the drama and all the emotional trauma and stress after parting ways with your former spouse is hard enough, now you’ll also have to deal with raising your child on your own. While this colossal task is a rewarding one in the end, the road can be filled with bumps and obstacles to the point that you may even doubt yourself. Though you might face these common single parent problems along the way, you can emerge triumphant over these obstacles once you have the support of the people around you.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/06/12/common-single-parent-problems-and-the-best-ways-to-deal-with-them/

Tips on Properly Dealing with Exes who have a New Significant Other

Calling quits on your marriage and filing for divorce may have been a mutual decision, but it might still be hard to accept seeing your ex find a new significant other. For some, this is particularly painful since they might still harbor some feelings for their exes. Others, meanwhile, see their ex’s new significant other as a threat to their role as a parent. Whatever the case, you might feel some resentment towards your ex’s new relationship, which shouldn’t be the case if you wish to remain having a cordial relationship for the sake of your children. There are a lot of questions asked by people facing the same situation, and properly dealing with exes with a new boyfriend or girlfriend can be done through these steps.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/06/05/tips-on-properly-dealing-with-exes-who-have-a-new-significant-other/

New Houston Stepfamilies Can Avoid Problems with Some Solid Advice

Newly-formed Houston stepfamilies often take the optimistic route, thinking that it’s going to be smooth-sailing once they all move in together. However, it’s not like the Brady Bunch where issues are resolved at the end of the episode. That’s why you’ll want the help of a support group like The Bridge Across to help you when you’re starting out. It will take a lot of hard work until you can proudly say that your family has become a harmonious unit. The main problem is that there are several stepparent issues that you can inadvertently step into if you are ignorant of them. These can cause damage to the new family’s dynamics, making it difficult for you to make the connection successfully.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/05/29/new-houston-stepfamilies-can-avoid-problems-with-some-solid-advice/

Needed Single Parent Help Can Assist You with These Coming Challenges

Life springs surprises on us all. Having a family doesn’t mean that it will always be whole. Whether by accident or other means, some people end up raising their children on their own. However, a single parent needs help to face the problems that pop up in their lives. Here are a few of the things you, as a single parent, can end up facing. Being Overburdened As a part of a couple, you would have someone there to help and assist you. As a single parent, you don’t have that luxury. For example, a full-time parent will need to work for a living through most of the day, then go home to cook dinner for the kids and help them with their homework. This can be overwhelming for anyone. With all of these hanging over their heads, it’s no surprise that single parents often end up being stressed and fatigued. Combined with having little to no time for themselves, and this comes out as an incredible burden to bear.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/05/22/needed-single-parent-help-can-assist-you-with-these-coming-challenges/

Single Parent Problems: How You Should Deal with High Conflict Exes

For the sake of their kids, divorced parents often find a way to put aside their personal feelings to give much needed love and support to their young ones. Co-parenting works in most cases, but there are times when it fails and it puts the children’s well-being more at risk as heated arguments between the exes occur more often. Co-parenting doesn’t usually work when one parent refuses to cooperate and seeks to take matters into his or her own hands. Sadly, this is one of the most common single parent problems that divorcees face. To effectively cope, you must know how to deal with your high conflict ex.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/04/23/single-parent-problems-how-you-should-deal-with-high-conflict-exes/

Dealing with Exes: Successful Co-Parenting with Your Former Spouse

Parents who divorce are under a lot of stress and emotional turmoil, but it could just be as devastating for their kids. Perhaps you have that nagging thought at the back of your mind that your messy divorce will have a negative effect on your children—and those suspicions could be true. According to an article on the Scientific American, high levels of parental conflict during and after divorce result in poorer adjustment in children. Therefore, dealing with exes positively after the divorce will likewise have a positive effect on children. With the right co-parenting approach, you won’t have to put your children in the middle of the conflict.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/04/22/dealing-with-exes-successful-co-parenting-with-your-former-spouse/

Surviving the Transition with Expert Stepparenting Help in Houston

Around 1300 stepfamilies are formed in the U.S. every day, according to The Stepfamily Foundation. These new stepfamilies consist of either remarried or recoupled parents. While the statistics seems promising given the number of broken families finding new hope, the truth is that the transition involves going through several obstacles. The Unique Obstacles of a Stepfamily Unlike a first-time family, a stepfamily faces more complicated challenges. Because both parents and children cannot quickly cope with the changes after the blend, their relationship with each other won’t change for a certain period until the transition phase is over. This means that the children will only be comfortable discussing life issues with their biological parents and vice versa. As the gap remains unbridged, situations can become frustrating, leading to conflicts between family members in the long run.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/04/21/surviving-the-transition-with-expert-stepparenting-help-in-houston/

Single Parent Help Tips: When Your Teenager Wants To Move with Your Ex

“I hate you and your stupid rules. I’m going to live with dad/mom!” These are the words that strike deep like a dagger into every single parent’s heart, especially when you know you’ve gone to great lengths to provide the best for your child. A flat out NO doesn’t usually work (unless you prove that your ex is unfit), so what should you do when your child takes on this behavior? To those seeking single parent families help, here are some advice from the experts. Don’t take what you child says at face value. Some kids have mastered the art of pushing the right button whenever a rule is being enforced. They use the threat of changing homes to make you back down. Others may genuinely be curious about life on the other side but feel guilty about such thoughts.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/04/20/single-parent-help-tips-when-your-teenager-wants-to-move-with-your-ex/

Avoid Stepparent Issues: Some Do’s and Don’ts on Raising your Stepkids

When it comes to family life, blog writer Lee Rose Emery has likely seen it all. She grew up in what most people would call a “traditional” family where people are primarily related by blood; while her husband grew up in a “blended” family, or one that includes step relatives, like step-siblings, stepparents, and others. As a mother herself, Emery recognizes the difficulties of parenting in a traditional family like her own. This has led her to wonder about the kind of challenges that scores of stepparents all over the world experience, including how they forge meaningful relationships within their families, most notably their stepchildren.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/01/29/avoid-stepparent-issues-some-dos-and-donts-on-raising-your-stepkids/

Single Parent Help Offers Guidance in Adjusting to a New Way of Life

The impact of divorce is partly dependent on the number of people involved. While it takes only two to divorce, others who also have a stake in your union may also be affected. Foremost among these “others” are your children. How does one properly break the news of divorce to the children? Marriage and family experts will agree that there's no single answer to this. First of all, the reactions could differ according to the children's age. Psychologists say that a child aged 6 to 11 may blame one parent, while kids aged 3 to 6 might blame themselves. While it may be impossible to spare children of the pain of the divorce, breaking the news to them the right way can help make the situation less difficult for all.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/01/22/single-parent-help-offers-guidance-in-adjusting-to-a-new-way-of-life/

Remarried and Single Parent Problems: Fathers and Their Powerful Words

Many experts say that one of the primary differences between men and women in relationships is that women talk and men do. I believe this is true for most. When a woman is struggling or dealing with one of the many high conflict exes in Houston, she wants to talk. When a man is struggling, he needs to do. Our brains are simply hardwired differently. Understanding this difference is a key to happiness in our relationships with our children. I've learned from many dads that I have worked with that divorced fathers and remarried fathers may sometimes struggle with the talking concept, something that may also be considered as among the most common single parent problems. They feel limited by their time, influence and role in their children's lives, and want to say powerful things to their children but sometimes, don't know how.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/03/23/remarried-and-single-parent-problems-fathers-and-their-powerful-words/

Be Center or Be Centered: A Stepmother’s Role in Houston Stepfamilies

The greatest attributes about women make it hard for them in families, particularly in new Houston stepfamilies. The way we think about our role as the stepmother and family member can greatly affect our happiness and satisfaction with our life. Being aware of them can make all the difference – no matter what kind of family you are in. Shift your thinking on these ideas, and make your life better. Women are raised in our society to be the center of the family. And the struggle of the stepmother begins. To most women, this means taking her rightful place as the creator of a loving home and beautiful family, and partnering with her husband to make the home run smoothly.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/03/26/be-center-or-be-centered-a-stepmothers-role-in-houston-stepfamilies/

Effective Single Parent Help: The Importance of Structured Workshops

As of the last U.S. Census Bureau tally, there are about 13 million single parent households in the U.S. If you are among them, there are certain challenges you will face, whether the setup is by choice or by circumstance. If you want the best for you and your child, you need to find ways to overcome these challenges. There are many strategies you may want to consider in successfully running a single-parent family. An article in the OMTimes Magazine, an information resource for different aspects of conscious living, presents some of these strategies and some important pointers, including the following:
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/03/25/effective-single-parent-help-the-importance-of-structured-workshops-2/

Renowned Coach on Dealing with Exes to Provide Counseling Sessions

The Bridge Across, a trusted counseling center in Texas which aims to help divorced individuals in dealing with exes effectively as well as provide life coaching to stepfamilies and single parents, is glad to announce that its very own Jayna Haney will also be offering sessions at Shield Bearer Counselling Centers through May 8. Haney’s expertise will further enhance the center’s programs, with a central goal of building better communities through healthier families.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/03/24/renowned-coach-on-dealing-with-exes-to-provide-counseling-sessions/

Tips for Solving Single Parent Problems from High Conflict Divorces

Married couples with a high conflict relationship lead a tough life with their family, with one or both partners inflicting pain on the other. To save what’s left of the family (or his/her sanity), the rational spouse would resort to divorce and bring up their children on his/her own. Single parenthood, after all, seems like a more desirable option than staying in an unhealthy relationship. Raising the children, providing food and shelter, and giving time to oneself are a few of the common struggles of single parenthood. Friends, relatives and neighbors would give most single parents a hand in no time, but professional help can ease the burden of certain single parent problems more easily. Single parents starting anew can also recover faster from the troubles of separation when they’re guided by people who are more experienced in their situation.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/03/11/tips-for-solving-single-parent-problems-from-high-conflict-divorces/

Dealing with Exes Must Be Done Soon for the Benefits of Both of You

One of the things that must be made crystal clear is that you are not getting back together. This should be done straight and smooth and there should be no need for any harshness when saying it. Any hint of hesitation can be interpreted as a sign of unsureness and the ex may still try to do things to get back together. Any incessant texts or calls must be discouraged so as not to give any false hope, and also for them to get the hint and back off completely. If it reaches a point where the behavior has become obsessive, this must be explicitly conveyed. Things usually get complicated when there is a child involved. Being a single parent, after all, can be a challenge – and either you or your ex might feel the need to turn to each other for support even with the current conflict between you. It won’t be easy at the start, but you will get the hang of it eventually and start enjoying the perks of being a single parent.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/03/09/dealing-with-exes-must-be-done-soon-for-the-benefits-of-both-of-you/

Houston Stepfamilies Must Avoid These Big Stepparent-Stepchild Mines

Allowing a child to spend time with the biological parent is vital, since each child has to have an opportunity wherein they don’t feel a sense of competition in terms of showing affection. This can be any type of occasion, either a meal out, a day of activities, or others—what matters most is that children look forward to things like these. If you’re a stepparent struggling to maintain a good kinship by committing one, two, or all of these mistakes, seek urgent stepparenting help from Houston firms like The Bridge Across. After all, succeeding as a stepparent relies heavily on fostering relationships and maintaining them.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/03/05/houston-stepfamilies-must-avoid-these-big-stepparent-stepchild-mines/

The Trials of Single Fatherhood: Why You’d Need Single Parent Help

Nobody goes into a marriage expecting to get divorced. That’s the same thought that went through the mind of Dave Taylor, a contributor at the self-help site Fatherhood.org. Couples marry with the best of intentions, often dreaming of settling down in a nice home, with a harmonious family living a happy life. The unexpected, however, happened. Once he and his wife started to have kids, troubles started to surface; they didn’t seem to find a common ground and got along roughly. They tried to make it work, but to no avail. The next thing Dave knew, he’s now looking at the prospect of single fatherhood, with the task of raising three kids.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2015/03/03/the-trials-of-single-fatherhood-why-youd-need-single-parent-help/

Common Stepparent Issues: Child Discipline Pointers for Both Parents

Organizations like The Bridge Across that provide stepparenting help in Houston assist their clients in determining their stepparent roles and managing their home. More often than not, they remind stepmoms not to fall into the “evil stepmother” stereotype, which is perpetuated by books and movies. Note that disciplining duties are not solely your job or responsibility. In fact, experts state that it’s best for stepmoms to let her partner discipline his own children. This will keep your stepchildren from resenting you. Moreover, rather than going for the “mother” role, try to be more of an aunt or big sister to your stepchildren. Show them that you are a strong and levelheaded woman, worthy of their love and respect.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2014/11/19/common-stepparent-issues-child-discipline-pointers-parents/

Coping Tips for Single Parents in Houston—Striking a Healthy Balance

If you’re going through a period where everything is simply overwhelming, don’t be afraid to reach out to others. Know that there are comprehensive single parent families help available from organizations, such as The Bridge Across, which offer effective programs to arm you with the right coping skills and attitude. Call on your trusted loved ones, neighbors, or friends for help, be it for watching the kids for a while or taking them to school when your car is in the shop again.
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2014/11/17/coping-tips-single-parents-houston-striking-healthy-balance/

By Solving Stepparent Issues, Stepfamilies Can Get Their Happy Endings

Nowadays, America’s “average family” is anything but, as most families in the U.S.–more than 50 percent, in fact–are either remarried or re-coupled stepfamilies, very different from the traditional nuclear family structure. An important implication of this development is that becoming a stepparent doesn’t preclude someone from gaining his or her happy ending. Just ask Eva and Roy, who were both featured in The Huffington Post’s “Blended Family Friday” series of articles. The key to their happy union?
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2014/11/14/solving-stepparent-issues-stepfamilies-can-get-happy-endings/

Single Parents in Houston Have it Tough, but They Shouldn’t Lose Hope

Life as a single parent is already challenging as it is, particularly at the physical and emotional levels, but who would’ve thought that the children also have it tough? This was the conclusion reached by Leslie Loftis of The Federalist, who reviewed multiple studies about children of divorced households and how they fared in life. Deseret News compiled these findings in an October 2014 article, and among them is the fact that kids of single parents generally want to spend time with the other parent, regardless of the reasons for the split:
http://www.thebridgeacross.com/2014/11/13/single-parents-houston-tough-shouldnt-lose-hope/