Child custody matters are often contentious between the parents. This sometimes causes the parents to try to alienate the child from the other parent. While they think that this is something that harms the adult, the child is the one who truly suffers.
Parental alienation occurs when one parent badmouths the other parent to the children in an effort to get the kids to avoid the other parent. The alienator wants the children to shun the other parent, but this takes away the ability of the parent and child to have a meaningful relationship.
The goal of parental alienation is to get the child to only spend time with one parent, even when the parenting plan provides time for both parents. This is a form of child abuse because it plays on the emotions of the child, but it can be very difficult to prove. Oftentimes, there is a history of abusive behavior within the marriage; however, this isn’t always the case.
A parent who is the victim on alienation might realize that there isn’t much in the way of evidence that shows what happened. In some cases, it might require that the child speak up about what’s going on but getting the child to do this might be difficult when the alienation is severe.
The damage that’s done to the child is often hard to work through when alienation occurs. Intense therapy might be necessary, but it might continue to be a challenge to get the child to spend time with the alienated parent. This puts the courts in a precarious position, so a parent who’s going through this should take the time to discuss the matter with their attorney, so they can evaluate the possible solutions to this issue.