DO KIDS SENSE THEIR PARENTS’ DISCORD?
Having parents who may not have a happy marriage is less destructive than a broken family, Fontana said. She said there is a persistent idea that children will bounce back from divorce, but the process is much more detrimental, she said. “I think adults too often think, ‘Oh the kids will be okay,’” Fontana said. “I think that is becoming pervasive. It’s really hard on kids.” Barring addictions and physical or emotional abuse as reasons for a divorce, Fontana said parents should stay together for the sake of their children. There are more benefits to having a two-parent household, she said, than the benefits of a happy marriage for the parents. “I think it is better for them if they can just stay together,” Fontana said. “It’s certainly hard. It takes a lot of maturity on the part of adults, to work on their marriage and put in the effort to make the marriage better. It’s hard.” Fontana said that most kids are unaware of the problems between their parents. Whatever is going on under the
