thought of the week
"Whether you think you can or whether you think you can't, you're right!" Henry Ford
.
child of an affair
"Each child is an adventure into a better life --an opportunity to change the old pattern and make it new." Hubert H. Humphrey
If finding out about your partner’s affair is one of the most devastating events in a person’s life, finding out that a child was or will be born of the affair comes a close second. While the damage of an affair in a relationship can take years to repair, a child that is born of an affair is a forever consequence of a major mistake - that is true. But much more than that, they are a living breathing little person with as many rights as any of us to feel safe and loved and secure in the world they have been brought into.
Balancing the rights and needs of a child of an affair with healing the relationship is a major task for anyone and there are no right or wrong answers. Making decisions about how to best meet the rights and needs of a child of an affair are part of dealing with the consequences of the affair and it is very hard to move on with such a large issue unresolved. A lot of objectivity is required at a time when emotion is high.
To get started the following points may help:
- work on the relationship first. As this is strengthened you will increase your ability to work as a team, through the issues regarding the child;
- work as a team to keep the marriage safe. Use technology such as email or sms to build a wall between your marriage and the other person while still staying in contact, if required, about the child.
- find out about the family law that is relevant to extra-marital children in your area. This will help you understand your obligations as a starting point.
With the right help you can work this through and develop a plan that is right for you and your family.
Connect with Us