Divorce and Depression

There are many things your divorce attorney in New York can help you with: Advising on negotiations with your spouse, filing motions to protect your interests in the financial and custody areas, and helping to craft legal language that makes your divorce sensible and less chaotic.

One thing people often do not think of their lawyers for is dealing with depression.  Divorce can have a significantly negative effect on your mental and emotional well-being, and while your divorce attorney is not a therapist, they often have access to resources to help you through your struggles.

Dealing with the Negatives

Divorce can often affect people in surprising ways:

• Feelings of failure: No one plans to get divorced someday, and there are often complex feelings of being responsible for the marriage’s failure in some way.
• Emotional trauma: Divorce does not mean you stop caring for the other person, and many people miss their spouse and find it difficult to live without them.
• Guilt: Children can often make divorcing parents feel very guilty, as they often do not understand why their lives had to be disrupted in exchange for their ‘fresh start.’
• Lifestyle shift: Often one or both spouses has to significantly change their lives, including a new neighborhood, loss of friends, and a new economic outlook.

These unsettling shifts can be difficult to deal with. Even worse, many people wish to keep up ‘appearances’ and admit no problems when they come through a divorce, either to show their former spouse their strength or to avoid embarrassment in front of neighbors or friends.

While your attorney may not be able to assist you in understanding and working your way through these emotional struggles, they may have excellent relationships with the kinds of professionals or resources that can help you get through the transition and begin again.  If you cannot find the right support, you may want to start here and listen to the valuable information shared by our vetted experts.