When you break up with someone, you probably don’t expect that you’ll have to continue to communicate with them. Unfortunately, you will have to do just that if you share children. Co-parenting with an ex who isn’t always kind or respectful can be challenging.
There are many ways that an ex might harass you while you’re trying to co-parent. In some cases, the actions are just irksome, but other times they can be downright illegal. While you shouldn’t ever try to match their disrespect, you must ensure that you’re protecting your rights as the child’s other parent.
Take a step back
It’s easy to become overwhelmed when your co-parent is harassing you. Take a step back from the situation to determine what options you have to address the matter. If the harassment is in the form of constant phone calls, you might be able to have the parenting plan set up to utilize only monitored communication so the harassing behavior can be addressed by the court.
Discuss the actions with someone
There might be legal implications of the harassment so you should make sure that you document what’s going on and discuss it with the person helping you with the child custody matters. It might behoove you to talk to your therapist or someone similar so you can find out how you can cope with the situation without having to cause more undue stress on the children.
There aren’t any easy answers when your ex is harassing you and you share children. One of the possible ways you can protect yourself is to have a solid parenting plan. This can include stipulations about parent conduct, as well as conflict resolution. Set this up so that it reflects the child’s best interests, and remember that it can be modified later if necessary.
