(310) 809-2011

Artemis Center for Family Therapy

My WordPress Blog

  • Artemis Center for Family Therapy
  • Home
  • Our Team
  • Clinical Services
  • Insurance & Forms
    • Before Your First Appointment
    • Client Forms
    • FAQs
    • Rates & Insurance
  • Resources
    • Mental Health Links
    • Mental Health News
    • Physical Health Links
    • Resources & Referrals
  • Contact
  • Blog

June 1, 2021 by Artemis Tegan Leave a Comment

Creating a Parenting Plan

In a perfect world, marriages would never dissolve. But divorce is a reality and one that impacts everyone involved, including the children. To help children feel safe and secure during the weeks and months that follow a divorce, it is important that both parties work together to come up with a co-parenting plan.

Keeping Your Children’s Best Interests in Mind

Simply put, a co-parenting plan is a comprehensive document that outlines how parents will continue to raise their children after a separation or divorce. This document will lay out things like how much time children will spend with each parent, how decisions – both major and minor – will be made moving forward, how the information will be shared and exchanged, and more.

While there are no hard and fast rules as to how a co-parenting plan should be formatted or what information should be included, it is vitally important to approach the plan’s development with your children’s best interests in mind. To create a helpful document, all issues, emotions, and pettiness should be put aside, and the focus should remain on what is best for your children.

Things to be Included

It’s important to mention that co-parenting plans may differ from state to state. Having said that, most will include the following five clauses:

1. A Brief General Statement

The plan will typically open with a general statement that the parents will be sharing responsibilities of parenting the child or children. This includes shared decision-making and shared daily routines.

2. Outline Parental Responsibilities

In this section, parents agree to communicate on all important aspects of the children’s welfare. This can include making decisions regarding health, education, and religious upbringing.

3. Specifics

This section can cover how you will actually arrange to time-share. This includes routine time, activity time, overnight stays, etc.

4. Holidays

Outline how you and your ex will handle holidays and other special observances.

5. Time Period and Amendments

All co-parenting plans should mention the length of the agreement and that the plan will need to be re-examined and possibly adjusted from time to time moving forward.

Again, these are very general guidelines. Your plan can be more explicit and specific to your situation.

Getting Help with Your Co-Parenting Plan

To create the right plan for your family, it’s recommended that you get some guidance. While a lawyer can help you with specific legalities, a family counselor can help you with communication. After all, you will need to navigate your emotions and be able to hear and be heard for the best interests of your children. A therapist can facilitate healthy and clear communication.

If you’d like to work with a family counselor to create a co-parenting plan that will help you both raise happy and successful children, please reach out to me.

RESOURCES:

  • https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/co-parenting-after-divorce/201510/developing-co-parenting-plans
  • https://www.avvo.com/family-law/child-custody/how-to-create-a-parenting-plan
  • https://www.divorcemag.com/blog/creating-a-successful-parenting-plan

Filed Under: Parenting, Separation/Divorce

October 2, 2019 by Artemis Tegan Leave a Comment

Why You Should Care What TV Your Kids Watch

Back when many of us were growing up, our parents would yell at us to shut the TV off and go outside and play. Parents of generations past knew that fresh air and sunshine were ultimately healthier than watching the “boob tube.” And back then the boob tube was far gentler than it is today!

But with each passing generation of parents, the TV was not just used for entertainment, it also became the number 1 babysitter for many households. I’m sure if we’re honest, most of us would admit to sticking our kids in front of the television so we could get some work done.

But there have been far too many studies that have concluded that television is harmful to our children’s development. In fact, many child psychologists and child development experts recommend that young children between the ages of 2 and 3 not be exposed to TV at all. Sadly, many parents place their young toddler in front of the TV set in hopes it will be educational for them.

Just How harmful is Television to Children?

It may surprise you what some studies uncovered about the effects of television viewing and children:

1. Poor Academic Performance

Researchers at Columbia’s College of Physicians and Surgeons found that 14-year-olds who watched more than one hour of TV daily “were at elevated risk for poor homework completion, negative attitudes toward school, poor grades, and long-term academic failure.’’ Those kids who watched three or more hours of TV each day were at even greater risk for learning disabilities.

2. A Lower Level of Education

Another study published in the American Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine found that “Increased time spent watching television during childhood and adolescence was associated with a lower level of educational attainment by early adulthood.’’

3. Development of Bad Lifestyle Choices

It’s not just education that is affected by TV viewing. The University of Michigan Health System has stated that kids who watch television are more likely to be overweight, smoke, have high cholesterol and suffer from sleep problems.

4. Teen Sex

Other studies have found that teens who watch more sexual content on TV are twice as likely to be involved in underage pregnancy.

What Can We Do?

  • Be a model to our kids and get up from the TV and do something better with our time. Pursue hobbies and social activities and involve our kids as much as possible.
  • Ban electronics at the dinner table. The kids who do well in school are those who learn to speak and listen to others.
  • Keep TV and cellphones out of kids’ rooms so they don’t sneak watch when they should be sleeping.
  • Pay attention to what our kids are watching and consider using parenting software to shield young children from sexual or violent content.

While some of us older folks may think, “We watched TV growing up and we came out just fine,” it’s important to remember that TV viewing time back then was generally far less and the content was far different. If we want our kids to thrive and become the best they can be in the future, it may be time to make some adjustments right now.

Filed Under: Parenting, Teens/Children

Artemis Tegan, M.A., LMFT



(310) 809-2011

Contact

Office Hours

Office Hours are Available by Request
Request An Appointment

Contact Information

(310) 809-2011
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn

A Therapist Website by Brighter Vision | Privacy Policy