Divorce Coach
Divorce is a life-changing experience. You will need to make important decisions regarding your future and you may be emotionally drained. The process can be daunting, and you may be affected by your fear of the unknown. “Where will I live?” “How will I afford an attorney?” “When do I tell my kids” “Am I making the right decision for my future?” “How long will the divorce take?”
A Certified Divorce Coach® is an excellent initial call for professional advice. A divorce coach is a neutral professional who can help inform you on the pitfalls of divorce. You will learn about the best solutions for your specific needs and receive referrals, if needed. A divorce coach will help you organize and prepare for divorce, while providing support during the process.
What Is A Certified Divorce Coach?
A CDC Certified Divorce Coach® is a professional who helps you navigate the divorce process. Divorce coaches are experts in all aspects of divorce, including the divorce process, co-parenting, parental planning, child development, and the effects of divorce on children, among others. Divorce coaching is not therapy; it is a goal-oriented approach to guiding you through a difficult situation.
The American Bar Association defines divorce coaching: “Divorce coaching is a flexible, goal-oriented process designed to support, motivate, and guide people going through the divorce to help them make the best possible decisions for their future, based on their particular interests, needs, and concerns.”
How Can A Divorce Coach Help?
- Provide assistance and guidance: You don’t want to use your attorney as a sounding board for your frustrations or the rollercoaster of emotions you’re experiencing, especially not at their hourly rate! A divorce coach will offer support and direction while assisting you in sorting through your feelings and thoughts.
- Knowing your options: You’ll have to decide whether a do-it-yourself divorce, mediation, collaborative divorce, cooperative divorce, or litigation is the best option for your family. The method you select will have a significant impact on the subsequent steps of the divorce.
- Help to be prepared: Allow yourself time to process your thoughts to avoid making hasty decisions that you may come to regret. As you move through the process, gather the paperwork and information you’ll need to be prepared and meet with your spouse or divorce experts in an effective manner.
- Building a team: Professional referrals for your individual needs can be provided by a divorce coach. Attorneys, mediators, financial professionals, divorce mortgage specialists, and therapists are some of the resources available. A divorce coach can also help you think of other resources for support, such as your church, school, friends or neighbors who can help support you through the process.
- Improve your communication skills: Learn new ways to express yourself clearly, confidently, and effectively. With your spouse and the divorce professionals. Effective communication is essential to negotiating the terms of a divorce.
- Increase your self-esteem and confidence: Divorce can leave you feeling unloved, unworthy, and unprepared for the avalanche of emotions that follow. Take a look at your genuine worth, regardless of your status or circumstance, and feel more confident and positive about the future that awaits you.
- Set co-parenting goals and strategy: If there are children involved in your divorce, learning to co-parent effectively with your ex will benefit you and your children. Ensure that you have the skills and resources you need to co-parent, as well as to set clear objectives and methods to help you stay focused on parenting your child (ren).
- Separating your emotions from the legal concerns Divorce comes with a plethora of emotions and legal concerns, so it’s critical to make decisions with a clear and focused mind. Work to keep your emotions out of the legal process so that the key decisions that influence you now and in the future are sound and deliberate.
- The transition from married life to single life: Being single for the first time might be daunting and foreign. Take a tour through your newfound life, adjust to the changes, and recognize the advantages of being single.
Take advantage of the FREE 30 minute discovery session with The Bridging Coach to ask questions and get help. Schedule a time that works for you: https://calendly.com/thebridgingcoach/30min
Bridget Leschinsky is a CDC Certified Divorce Coach®
Photo by Amy Hirschi on Unsplash