Dealing with a rude and manipulative co-parent after a divorce can seem intimidating at first.
You want to protect your children from this behavior, but you may not notice the subtle beginnings of a problem. Learning about potential warning signs of parental alienation can help you.
Repeated phrases
According to Psychology Today, children may copy and repeat harmful ideas after hearing them from their co-parent. He or she may attempt to tell your children lies or personal details about you or the divorce that gives your children a negative view of you.
This can lead to an extreme situation where your co-parent can do no wrong in your children’s eyes, while your children see you as an awful parent and person.
Increased arguing
While it is common to need to discipline your children, a sharp increase in the number of insults or bad behavior from your children can signal something worse is happening. Your children may become outright angry at you for almost no reason or even say they hate you.
In some circumstances, you may even hear your children say that they cannot remember any good times with you. This may happen because your co-parent may try to encourage your children to not trust you or like being around you.
Sudden lack of invitations
If your co-parent suddenly starts forgetting to tell you about important medical visits or school activities, then you may struggle to stay connected to your children. Spending less time around your children means your co-parent can undermine or threaten your connection to them more easily.
Learning about these signs and others can help you realize parental alienation is happening.