This father shares the perils of divorce and the influence the co-parent has on his daughter.   He discusses how values and morals impact the co-parent relationship and ultimately, the child.  Sadly, his attempts to maintain a relationship with his daughter have been unsuccessful.

I was informed that my now 18 year old daugher refers to me as a “sperm donor” despite the fact that I was in her life until the age of 9 living with her mother, and for years I continued to try and be in her life, and being a positive influence. Divorce though dredges up a lot of negative feelings and comments that aren’t mutually exclusive to either parent.

That said, many of the comments coming out of her now “adult” mouth are a reflection of her mother’s continued verbal attacks, while my daugher denounces any criticism of her mother. Can you see the hypocrisy? It’s ok for her mother to say whatever she wants about me, but anything remotely critical I may say, even if warranted, is off limits. The implication is, her mother is perfect, beyond reproach as it would seem she is also. It’s that kind of arrogance many of us are fighting as it’s that kind of arrogance that ties into men not being allowed to parent because women are commonly portrayed as the more important parent. 

One dad shares the heartache of divorce and how this has impacted the relationship with his daughter.  He offers advice to parents who are talking about divorce.  Sadly, the relationship with his daughter is forever tainted.  

This is a blatant reminder that children need to have a relationship with both parents.  NO ONE comes out ahead when one parent puts obstacles in the way of the parent child relationship.  And, the child misses out-big time!!!!!

I met my daughters mother when I was 19 and on Active duty Army. I was in a rapid deployment unit and thought at times I would be sent to combat. We saw each other when we could and soon she got pregnant. I thought the only honorable thing to do was to go to the justice of the peace and marry her. I couldn’t have been more wrong.
I got out of the Army and tried to live as a lot of Americans do, work, school,and provide for my family. It was hard, money was tight. We fought about everything. Soon we realized that we needed help. We went to counseling and prayed together, but we soon realized that we were polar opposites.

One weekend, after I got home from the midnight shift, I was just about to fall asleep, and I heard a knock on the door. It was a process server, who told me to appear in court in two days for a custody hearing. This caught me by surprise, since my daughters mother was suppose to be staying with her mom for the weekend. Well, I went around town to try to find a lawyer on little income, but the more I listened and payed the 50 dollar consultation fee, the more I realized how ignorant I was. I eventually settled to use one lawyer which happen to be my ex’s mom’s boss since she was a paralegal. They talked to my like they really cared, big mistake!
We got the standard divorce, split holidays and weekends. I went to college and worked two jobs. I never missed a child support payment and carried full medical and dental on my daughter. After graduating college, I made more money, and she came at me for an increase in child support. I spent my entire 20’s, getting my daughter every other weekend, since I had to work some weekends.
In 2011, my mom got terminally ill and eventually died from breast cancer. While I was pushing my mom’s hair from her face, as she struggles to talk. She told me to go find happiness. I thought she was right! I reunited with my high school sweet heart and sat my daughter down and told her that I would be moving away, approx. 600miles.

I tried to modify visitation to half the summer. She gave me 3 weeks instead of 2. Anyways, I thought my daughter and I would be close because of technology and that she had flown on several airplanes since I worked for the airlines for 8 years while I was at college.

Unfortunately, My daughter quit coming to see me and now has stop talking to me. She is 16 years old and a teenager. She has no cellphone and I am blocked from calling her home phone. Her mom says that she doesn’t want me in her life because I am to mean.

Well, there is a lot of detail left out with my story, but I would have never predicted that my daughter would avoid me. I think of my self as the fun dad, cool dad. Also I have never missed a child support payment, so why my daughter’s mother hates me is mind boggling.

I have since remarried and so has she, but my first born who is 16 avoids me and if I call her mom’s cell to just ask to speak with my daughter, I get nasty text in return. I am so confused. I thought about taking legal action but what good will it do since my daughter is convinced that I am the bad for her.

I hope anyone who reads this both man and women can take from my story that if and when you get a divorce, please treat each other with respect and don’t use the kids as a tool to get back at the other person. Children really need both parents and parents need that connection too. Hopefully, my daughter will come around, until then I just monitor her Facebook, leave only sweet messages, and pray that she will realize how much I miss her.

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Shared from Children-and-Divorce site by Joe (holly, MI).

Link: http://www.children-and-divorce.com/missing-my-daughter.html

#98, Missing My Daughter!!

One mom shares her experiences with Parental Alienation Syndrome. Taking a graduate course covering the topic of PAS  offered insight that saved the relationship with her children. 

My Experiences with Parental Alienation Syndrome

I still remember standing at the top of a sloping gravel driveway. My sister stood beside me; I was uncertain of the words we were trained to speak. As the black pick-up truck made its final ascent to our front door, I look at my sister. I look at my mother who is wearing an expression on her face, which I now identify as smug. Her eyes prod me and I fear not having the courage to say what I know in my heart is wrong, because the emotions I am feeling are hurt and fear.

As my father pulls his truck to a stop and peers out the window at us, my sister and I say simultaneously, “We don’t want to see you!” My father glares at my mother. He speaks no words. He stares at us. Does he see the fear in our eyes? What is he thinking? Tears well up in his eyes. He backs down the drive-way. I watch until his truck is gone and then I listen until I can hear his engine no more. I cry. I am seven-years-old.

It is May 2011, the month of Mother’s Day. It is the last time I will see my daughters for a while for they are moving with their father to another state—I sent them to him, because he has more money than I do; he can give them a better life. My ex-husband assures me that our pick-up spot is the same time and same place. It is the day of our rendezvous. I call. My ex-husband tells me that my daughters—who are age 7 and 9—do not want to see me. I am speechless with disbelieve. Our mother-daughter relationship is stable. Our visits have been joyful. I find my voice. I don’t believe you. It is your duty as their father to be supportive. How can you allow our children to decide our visitation arrangement? Oh, I see, you talked to your mother and she approved this message. I’m angry. I want to talk to my daughters. Their small voices carry across the air waves to my ear. Their voices communicate fear. I try to keep the steel from my voice. Pack your bags. I am coming to get you. It’s our last weekend together. And then I hear the words just as my sister and I said them so many years before, “We don’t want to see you!” The pain rises with the tears. I force my voice to remain calm. I now know what I have done. I will do no more damage. It’s okay. Mom loves you. Good bye.
I would not talk to my daughters for four months. I decided to stay out of their lives until they were old enough to make the decision to be in my life, until he could not use them as a weapon and damage them further. I don’t know if it was the right decision, but I was poor—as I am now—and I could afford no one to advocate my right in this joint custody arrangement. I had to trust that time would heal the wound. I didn’t know what my ex-husband and his wife said about me during that time of silence. I didn’t know if my daughters would ever want me in their lives again.

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Marriage -Ecosystem: Parental Alienation Syndrome by Heather Blackwell.

Link:  http://www.marriage-ecosystem.org/parental-alienation-syndrome.html

#96, Feuding Parents