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Articles on relationships, family and wellbeing.
Co-Parenting – The Loyalty Trap
Your child should never feel guilty for loving both parents. They watch your facial expressions when the other parent’s name is mentioned. They’re reluctant to share what they did at the other parent’s house. They edit their stories. They protect your feelings. When separated parents carry anger, be...
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Your Children Are Watching How You Love
Affection between parents teaches children: What love looks like How closeness feels What to expect in their future relationships Silence, distance, and emotional coldness teach lessons too – just not the ones we intend. Affection isn’t a bonus in relationships – it’s the glue. It tells your partner...
When Childhood Trauma Meets Conflict
Childhood was not a safe place for you. You learnt your feelings were wrong. You learnt to disappear and hide away your emotions and your feelings. You were punished for crying. Now you’re in a relationship and you find yourself shutting down and running away from conflict. You need to feel heard. Y...
When Children Are Caught in Adult Conflicts
Sometimes adults blame children for things beyond their control. Even very young children can feel caught in the middle. When one child witnesses another child being blamed, they may: Misplace anger or frustration onto the sibling Act aggressively or withdraw Feel confused, guilty, or anxious Childr...
When a Child Is Yelled At, Their World Collapses
A small child doesn’t understand stress, overwhelm, or loss of control. They only understand one thing: “I am not safe.” When an adult hurls abuse into a child’s face, the child’s system goes into survival mode. Their brain stops learning and starts protecting. Their heart races. Their body floods w...
What happens when a child is consistently berated by one or both parents?
Berating a child can lead to poor self-esteem and self-worth. They may believe they are not good enough, leading to feelings of inadequacy, or a fear of failure. Long term the child becomes anxious and less confident in their abilities. Due to criticism, a child will often struggle to regulate their...
Post Separation Abuse
Separation is a painful experience because of the ending of the relationship and it is made more traumatic when one party decides to blindside their partner with abuse through the legal and court system. Separation abuse causes unnecessary stress, trauma, financial devastation, and even separation f...
The Silent Treatment
Adults find it difficult to cope when their partner refuses to communicate or interact with them. They can become insecure, resentful and it makes them feel abandoned. Now imagine how a child feels when a parent ignores them for days. This teaches the child when I do something wrong, I don’t exist....
Staying Together Because Of The Kids?
The kids know you’re unhappy, even if they don’t voice it. Kids don’t need two parents in one house. They need two emotionally safe parents. Conflict doesn’t disappear because it’s behind closed doors. It finds its way into every aspect of your home. The children feel it. They sense it. The children...
How does parental conflict affect children long term?
It is normal for couples to argue, but it how they argue that affects children externally and internally. Children internalise how their parents navigate through conflict and take these patterns into their adult relationships. Research has shown Interparental conflict disturbances in child sleep pat...
The effects of Conflict on pregnancies & children
Ongoing research has been done on exposure to prenatal stress, development and long-term functioning of offspring directly and indirectly. When the mother-to-be is either living in a toxic relationship or she herself is abusive, there are long term effects on the unborn child and children. They are...