Have you noticed a change in your child’s behaviors toward you? Do you feel like your relationship with your child is being damaged and you don’t know why? If you answered “yes” to these questions, then you may want to consider whether you and your child are being subjected to parental alienation.
What is parental alienation?
Parental alienation is the process whereby one parent manipulates a child in hopes of distancing that child from his or her other parent. This can be an aggressive tactic that a parent uses to minimize or eliminate contact between the child and the other parent, and it’s often utilized in court to seek modifications to custody and visitation.
How does alienation occur?
There are a lot of ways. An alienating parent may continually feed the child information that is simply false, such as that the other parent doesn’t love the child, or a custodial parent may withhold contact between the noncustodial parent and the child and then blame the noncustodial parent for that lack of contact. In some instances, an alienating parent will go so far as to program the child into believing that he or she has been abused or neglected by the other parent. Alienating parents can get creative in how they manipulate their children, so be aware of alienation and attentive for its red flags.
What do signs of alienation look like?
There are many signs of parental alienation. Your child may display unfair, unwarranted, and unrelenting criticism of you and your family members while at the same time showing unwavering support for the other parent. The language that your child uses when criticizing you might not sound like their own, either. False claims that seem to come out of nowhere can be indicative of alienation, too. Note these conversations and ask questions to try to figure where your child is getting his or her information.
Fight back against parental alienation
When you’re being subjected to parental alienation, it can be easy to feel defeated. But there are strong legal arguments that you can make to protect your child and your relationship with him or her. Please consider speaking to an experienced family law attorney if you think that you’re being subjected to alienation, as competent legal action can make all the difference for you and your family.