COPING WITH DIVORCE

“I, Sarah Lynn, do have the right to hereby ask you to not say bad things about my father or ask me to keep secrets from him.  I have the right to sleep in my own bed, and….”  Such is a common start of the “Divorced Kids’ Bill of Rights” composed by children who are involved in a JFS Coping with Divorce Group.Facilitated by master level therapists, groups which meet weekly for ten weeks are part of an effort to help children cope with the difficulties of their parents’ separation or divorce. 

Children, ages 7-11, are guided in recognizing their feelings and in expressing what their needs are. One of the techniques is to have the children write graffiti on poster board, which is displayed in another room where their parents are meeting at the same time with another social worker.  The revealing graffiti enables parents to learn about some of the strong emotions their kids are experiencing.The parents’ group focuses on parenting skills, including how to keep from putting kids in the middle, how to talk to them about their grief, and how to answer their questions.

Parents may contact JFS at 504.831-8475 or jfs@jfsneworleans.org for more information.  Scholarships and a sliding fee scale based on income are available.