Image by freepic.diller on Freepik
Pets are the best source of emotional support for children outside their families. They provide a genuine bond and companionship, something children may not even get from others, especially those their age. Pets play a crucial role in providing them comfort and affection, so much so that it’s been proven that pets help children of divorce cope.
During this turbulent and often traumatic event, pets, as loyal as they are, become children’s constant. They consistently show up, giving children the same amount of affection and comfort as they’ve always been given. When the house becomes lifeless due to the separation, pets liven it up with their antics.
Hence, it’s no surprise how these wounded kids rely on their pets for a therapeutic connection—the one thing divorce takes away from them. But when the separation becomes established and children see their parents physically separate, can pets help children of divorce truly navigate this change?
Understanding Children’s Emotional Experience During Divorce
“I knew so many children that were products of their parents’ divorce and the impact that had on them. And that’s where she (Libby) became the main character of the book.”
In her interview with ReadersMagnet, author Leisa Braband shares her journey in writing her book, The Pet Nanny. She talks about what fueled her to craft her protagonist, Libby, and why she chose to put her through the circumstances reflected in the story. While primarily a light-hearted tale of a girl taking care of pets, underneath this wholesome storyline is one of the books to help children cope with divorce.
Ultimately, what Leisa wishes to impart to her readers is a story to help soothe children through the upheaval they’re going through. She illustrates how pets help children of divorce cope, fundamentally reminding them that they will never be alone in such events and giving parents advice on how to better support their children through the process.
The Emotional Storm of Divorce
Divorce may be the best and, often, the only resolution most couples find to regain their sanity and happiness. But this is most definitely the worst scenario for their children. It’s everything and nothing all at once, the biggest change they would never imagine happening in their lives.
Even when they seem naïve to understand the effects of this decision, they can still observe and be directly influenced by the changes slowly creeping into their routines.
For parents, divorce is their best chance at freedom. But for kids, this is emptying.
Divorce is a highly stressful experience, especially for children who fundamentally rely on their parents for support, affection, and stability. They are children’s immediate source of security, and seeing them separate means this security gets damaged. Children are left not only questioning who they should be depending on but also with a bruised trust.
To them, divorce feels as though their worlds have been turned upside down. They will have trouble coping with the event, with feelings of shock, anger, and agony overwhelming them. The uncertainty and stress they have to go through, regardless of how naïve they may be with their age, is unimaginable.
Reliable Relationships As Their Anchors
As their last saving grace, parents do absolutely anything to help children through the chaos of divorce.
Most distract them with gifts, the best and most expensive ones available. Others prioritize comforting their children and supporting them. However, when parents are the source of uncertainty, support, and reassurance may be more effective when given by other reliable figures. This can be family members, inviting cousins or relatives over to accompany and cheer children up.
But surprisingly enough, more often than not, family pets become their best source of genuine connection to help ground them. Pets help children of divorce find ease by providing them with constant comfort and stability. When their parents, the supposed constants, are being challenged, pets stand in to offer affection and their nonjudgmental presence.
How Pets Help Children of Divorce Find the Emotional Stability
There’s no questioning the happiness pets give their owners. But when it’s children navigating a traumatic and depressing experience, how do they play their part?
Solutions around the question: “How to help your child through a divorce” may rarely include suggestions like buying pets. There’s not much known connection between family pets and divorce. Resolutions mostly revolve around the parents’ attempts to reassure their children and create meaningful memories before the separation. However, it’s crucial and beneficial to acknowledge the role they play in coping and processing these turbulent times.
Nonjudgmental Companionship
Pets help children of divorce fill the emptiness they may start feeling during the process by offering belongingness and acceptance. Pets’ constant presence will be able to bridge the emotional gap the divorce will create. They may not provide verbal comfort, but animals can appropriately show emotional reactions to children’s woes. They don’t only help by lowering stress. Instead, their presence offers children a healthy outlet to confide their emotions.
It’s surprising to think how pets help children of divorce cope. But how they do this becomes pretty apparent when people observe their interactions.
At times of extreme uncertainty and stress, pets become children’s neutral and nonjudgmental companions. They’re free to talk to them and release their frustrations without fearing judgment or unnecessary comments. Instead, children receive more affection, which will only further comfort them despite the issue. If pets are one thing, they’re a source of unconditional love, which children may need during their parents’ divorce.
The magic of this connection that heals distress and eases uncertainty is what’s illustrated in Leisa Braband’s The Pet Nanny and newly published The Pet Nanny 2: Libby Goes to a New School. Find out how Libby heals from her parent’s divorce and the agony that came with it with the pets around her. Grab a copy now of The Pet Nanny and The Pet Nanny 2: Libby Goes to a New School!
