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Email of the Day

What Kids Go Through For Their Parent's Happiness
02/28/2017


Dr. Laura:

Thank you for always telling parents to think of their children first when they divorce.  I am a child of divorce.  I lived with my mom and had no relationship with my dad.  She dated, because she wanted a "father figure" for me, but my first memories were of her shacking up with a guy, then them fighting, and the next thing I knew, we were moving into an apartment, leaving behind my dog, who was the only constant in my life.  It was great for a few years, because I had my mom to myself.  But her friends told her she shouldn't be alone and she needed someone in order to be happy.  She started dating again, and I got dragged around to different places.  

Then she met my stepdad and shacked up with him for five years.  I got shuffled from our apartment to his house (which was 30 minutes away) five nights a week.   All I looked forward to were the nights we were in our own apartment, which meant my own bed and belongings, and a chance to talk to my own friends.  They married when I was 14, and then life got a little easier.  

As a teenager, I listened to you on the radio, and because of you, I learned about meeting a good man and choosing wisely, as well as treating kindly.  I'm now a stay-at-home mom to an 18 month old and one due in two weeks.  I make sure to be my husband's girlfriend (and he talks about me as his girlfriend, which causes some weird glances when people don't realize he's talking about ME, his wife!).  I love every minute of my life, and my marriage will be strong, will last, and our children will not have to go through what I went through.

Please continue to hammer parents and fight for us kids, because I can say that I totally understand what it is like to be the child and how unfair it is to be dragged around all over in order for their parents to be "happy."  

Harolyn


Tags: Choose Wisely-Treat Kindly, Divorce, Marriage, Parenting, Personal Responsibility, Relationships, Stress, Teens, Women's Point of View
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