When parents divorce or separate, it’s usually a formative event in a young person’s life. Sometimes, parental divorce can cause serious emotional distress or even trauma. Without effective support and care, young people may find it difficult to cope.
Some experts argue that it’s often not divorce itself that is so harmful, but the conflict and instability that lead up to and follow divorce. But it’s still important for parental separation to be handled with care. This means understanding how it may affect young people, providing them with support (from parents and others), and ensuring they’re not placed in the middle of any conflicts.
What Is the Impact of Parental Divorce on Young People’s Mental Health?
Divorce and separation can be very stressful for parents. They may have to cope with financial worries, changes in their social environment, and the loss of a long-term partner. Sometimes, parents can be overwhelmed by their own emotions and find it difficult to give children the care and attention they need.
Without other close figures around to support young people (such as relatives and family friends), children may feel neglected or left alone. This can cause traumatic stress that may have long-lasting consequences for their mental health.
Sometimes, parents actively or unintentionally involve children in their conflicts, such as by asking for emotional support or using them for communication. This may lead to more emotional distress and feelings of guilt or dishonesty.
The conflicts that usually lead up to a divorce or separation can also have a big impact on young people’s well-being. Stressful family environments may exacerbate mental health symptoms and make it more likely for them to develop. Parents in conflict are also less likely to provide effective emotional support for young people and when parents harm or hurt one another, children may learn from these behaviours.
Research shows that young adults with divorced parents are more likely to develop a mental health disorder, loneliness, chronic stress, attachment avoidance and attachment anxiety. Even by the age of 12, children with divorced parents have more mental health problems than those with non-divorced parents. Divorces that happen when young people are aged 11-16 may have a particularly strong impact, perhaps reflecting the vulnerability of adolescents to mental health issues.
Can Divorce and Separation Trigger the Onset of Eating Disorders?
Eating disorders are complex mental health conditions caused by biological, social, and cognitive factors. A young person’s genes, personality traits, ways of thinking, life experiences, and relationships with other people can all contribute to the development of disordered eating behaviours.
This means it’s not usually possible to identify a single ‘cause’ of an eating disorder. But sometimes stressful life events may trigger the onset of disordered eating behaviours. Because of the importance of interpersonal relationships in causing and maintaining eating disorders, events that affect a young person’s social and family system may be particularly significant.
Research shows that parental divorce makes young people more vulnerable to the development of eating disorders. For example, one study found that young people with bulimia were more likely to have divorced parents than those without an eating disorder. Divorce also increases the risk for the onset of an eating disorder, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and eating disorders not otherwise specified.
Among young people without a diagnosable eating disorder, divorce also seems to increase the risk of disordered eating behaviours. It’s linked to higher levels of body dissatisfaction, weight control behaviours such as dieting and exercise, and binge eating.
Parental Divorce, Eating Alone, and Eating Disorders
In Spain, researchers conducted a study among over 2800 girls between the ages of 12 and 21. They identified young people who were currently without eating disorders and then assessed them again 18 months later. During this time, 90 girls had developed eating disorders.
The researchers found that girls who had divorced, separated, or widowed parents were more likely to have developed an eating disorder. Habits of eating alone and exposure to some forms of mass media also increased the risk.
Experiencing parental divorce and conflict may be a stressful life event that can trigger an eating disorder. It may also prevent parents from offering effective emotional and social support that can protect against mental illness. More specifically, families who have gone through divorce may be less able to teach girls about healthy eating patterns – or to act as positive role models.
Parental divorce or conflict may also be linked to eating alone: in unstable family situations, family meals may be tense, uncomfortable, or not happen at all. This may make it more likely for young people to develop unhealthy eating habits that go unnoticed by others.
Safeguarding Young People During Family Conflict and Divorce
Divorce may always take some emotional toll on young people. But there are ways to safeguard the process so that any harm is minimised and young people’s mental health is prioritised. This makes it less likely that conflict, divorce, and separation may trigger the onset of an eating disorder or make developing one more likely.
Social and emotional support is key to safeguarding young people before, during, and after a separation. This might involve support from relatives, family friends, teachers, and other community members. It may also include professional support, such as counsellors, social workers, and therapists. Professional support is crucial if a young person develops or already has a mental health disorder.
Parents should take care to relate to their children in a positive way during and after a divorce. It’s important for parents not to involve their children in their own conflicts—this can create extra distress and anxiety. Parents may benefit from education interventions that support them in avoiding harmful behaviours and embracing positive ones.
The Wave Clinic: Specialist Interventions for Young People and Families
The Wave Clinic offers specialist mental health support for young people and families. We deliver exceptional clinical care from our residential and outpatient treatment spaces in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Our programs combine psychological and medical expertise with education, skills learning, and personal growth.
We support young people to grow in self-confidence and develop the skills they need to follow their dreams.
At The Wave, our programs are family-centred. This means that family involvement is prioritised from the start of a treatment program. We believe that families play a fundamental role in a young person’s recovery from mental illness, constituting an invaluable source of emotional support and reinforcing positive change.
Some of our family interventions include:
- Family therapy
- Parent skills training
- Creative family therapy
- Divorce, mediation, and family services
We offer family interventions on an outpatient basis, but also through family-intensive weeks. During family-intensive weeks, we host family members at our residential centre for seven days of attentive and comprehensive support. By creating new memories together, families break away from previous patterns of behaviour and develop a supportive, cohesive family system.
If you’re interested in our programs, get in touch today. We’re here to help.
