One of the nicest things you want to see is a happy family spending quality time together, walking or eating together. Family is the basic unit of society and though there are conflicts inside the home, the family members are usually willing to compromise and set things in proper order to have a joyful and lasting relationship.
However, lawyers recommend that rather than staying together when couples are discontented, they should be separated instead. They believe that children are badly affected when parents choose to continue living together when they are both unhappy than file a divorce.
A previous study found that 1 out of 4 couples (26.5 percent) choose not to end their marriage for their children's sake while 19 percent of parents consented on staying together until Christmas and get separated on January to celebrate their last Christmas together as a family. Many divorce lawyers, however think that it is not a wise decision.
Martin Loxley, head of the Family Law team at Irwin Mitchell solicitors, stated, "We see many couples in relationships where they aren't happy, or don't really want to be in, but who stick together for the sake of their children. While it is an understandable reaction for parents to feel that it would be better to stay together to avoid the impact of a relationship breakdown on the children, in some cases doing so may only serve to increase the long term adverse effects on them." Loxley believes that children, especially those who are older can sense if their parent's relationship is not smooth sailing. She also thinks that it could have a negative effect on younger children, once they learn about their parents' relationship and may feel that they were cheated while growing up.
A survey also showed that 8 out of 10 children prefer their parents to separate rather than feel miserable living together. "This new information shows that, despite the common myth that it is better to stay together for the sake of the kids, most children would sooner have their parents divorce rather than remain in an unhappy relationship. Being exposed to conflict and uncertainty about the future are most damaging for children, not the fact of divorce itself, " stated Jo Edwards, chairman of Resolution.
