Divorce is never easy, but when it ends on a hostile note, you may struggle to figure out how to work together for the sake of your children. In some instances, parallel parenting is the only way to handle child custody. According to WebMD, parallel parenting assigns responsibilities to each parent without the involvement of the other.
If your spouse refuses to cooperate with you, you may require a parallel parenting plan.
Limit your contact
Too much contact can lead to fighting. When you argue or fight with your children’s other parent, your kids may feel isolated. Their performance at school can suffer, and you might notice more behavioral problems. To avoid fighting with your ex, limit contact as much as possible. If you feel like your ex wants to start an argument or if he or she sends you threatening or insulting messages, do not respond.
Try to keep communicating over text or email. There are also apps available to help you communicate with your ex, track important dates and share information. When you use text communication, you also have a record of all messages.
Stick to the plan
Your parenting plan has to cover all of your bases. Each parent’s parenting time should have a firm beginning and end. You should have the place to exchange kids planned out and prepare for what happens if someone has to cancel a visitation. You should also outline how to settle disputes when the two of you disagree about some aspect of your children’s care.
When working with a difficult co-parent, you must learn to let some things go. For example, if your ex has different rules at his or her house, you need to pick your battles as long as they do not hurt the kids.