Children are adversely affected when their parents divorce. Feelings of anger, sadness and frustration can overwhelm the child. Parents can help by listening to their child and making sure they know that even though things are changing, they are still loved and everything will be fine.

Of course the effects of divorce will affect the child for the rest of their lives. This does not have to be a life sentence though. If the child is able to communicate how they are feeling, they should be able to live a happy life once they overcome the grief.

Children who have gone through a divorce often have problems with self-esteem. Feeling not good enough and that they may have caused the divorce in the first place. Children lose their sense of security and also gain a sense of loneliness once a parent leaves the home.

The long term affects of divorce varies greatly. Depending on if the divorce was amicable and simple, the long term affects tend to be less pronounced and easier to recover from. A child tends to be better adjusted if both parents continue to stay involved in the every day life of their child.

There is a chance that more prominent effects do not come into play until well into adulthood. Feelings of anxiety, fear, anger and even guilt can affect the child of divorced parents long after the event occurred. These feelings can affect the adult’s relationships and even their own marriage in the future.

Children of divorce are more likely to be divorced than their parents were. Reasons for this mainly come from unresolved feelings about their own parent’s divorce. Statistics also show more children of divorce will become victims of abuse at some point in their lives. Students tend to do poorly in reading, spelling and math than those from two parent homes and are more likely to drop out of college.

Younger children may experience problems with regression, especially when they are 3-5 years of age. They may also be more sensitive about their problems and males feel a loss of control over their lives. Some may become more responsible and mature and will feel the need to succeed in their own marriage.