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Documented messaging might benefit co-parents

On Behalf of | Oct 18, 2019 | Family Law

Dealing with a contentious ex when you have children together is a rough experience. One way that you might be able to reduce the amount of conflict with your ex is to use documented communication, such as messaging, that keeps track of everything that is said. This ensures that nobody can claim something was said when it wasn’t, and it takes the guesswork out of trying to decipher what was agreed upon when there’s a dispute.

Documented messaging might be a step in the right direction, but you can’t think that it is a foolproof way of handling the conflict. There is a chance that your ex is still going to try to find ways that they can make things more difficult.

The only way that co-parenting is going to work is through mutual respect. This has to start when you and your ex-spouse are still trying to work through the child custody agreement. Even if you limit the communication to messages only, you must be fully prepared to stay calm and respectful in your communications.

One thing that can happen when you are using messages to communicate is that misunderstandings can occur. You should read messages more than once to ensure that your message is coming through as you intend. Recognize that your tone can’t be easily interpreted through a written message and the wrong words could appear angry or disrespectful when you didn’t mean to sound that way.

When you are going through a situation with an ex who wants to battle over every tiny detail of the child’s life, messaging might be your best option since it provides a record of everything. In all messages, your child’s best interests must be considered and respected.