When clients are mediating their divorce with me, they frequently ask themselves, “What’s that going to look like?” This question attaches to all sorts of inquiries and is almost always answered by them with the unsatisfactory “hard to say.”

Here’s an example:

In devising a parenting plan, the divorcing couple is charged with coming up with both a Regular Parenting Schedule (RPS) and a supplementary schedule that covers all those occasions that fall outside of the RPS, i.e., holidays, school vacations, birthdays, summer. This is no easy task.

Why? Because in trying to decide where the children are going to spend their time (with just one parent) in the future, the couple must visualize something that has never before happened in their children’s lives. As I work with these brave parents, I see the anguish on their faces as they “divvy up” the holidays and set down specific times for pick-ups and drop-offs.

And there’s no way to say–for sure–how it will look until the plan is put into practice. And this can be daunting.

People going through divorce mediation are staring out into an unknown future. This is something I’ve developed a sensitivity toward through the years of working with couples. It is something I regard and respect.

If you are considering divorce, please reach out to me: Jenna Brownson, Esq. at 978.760.0482 or jenna@holisticmediation.org