10 Things You Can do to Support a Loved One Going Through a Divorce
Invite them to join you (or you and your spouse) for your plans on a weekend. Weekends are often family/couple time and can be very lonely for someone newly single, so consider inviting them to join you.
Rather than ask them if they need anything (they often feel guilty and won’t tell you)…just make a casserole and drop it off, or bake some muffins, or even just show up with a cup of coffee and an empathetic ear.
Offer to babysit their kids whenever they need it. Divorce involves a lot of meetings and also a lot of solo parenting. Spending money on babysitters is probably not high on their priority list…so if you can lend a hand, do.
Offer to help go through the stuff at the house with them. They may need to box up their ex-spouse’s belongings, or just want to put away some photos or other reminders of their marriage. Bring a box of tissues and help them, so they don’t have to do it alone.
Offer to be their “date” when they don’t want to show up at an event alone.
Drop off a care package or some flowers.
Invite them to join you on holidays that they don’t have their kids (or spouse) and would be alone. By the same token…if celebrating a holiday as a single parent is too much for them…include them AND their kids in your plans.
Go with them to interview attorneys or financial advisors, so they have another set of ears and someone to take notes.
Offer your (or your spouse’s) help around the house if there’s a chore that their ex-spouse used to do and they aren’t sure how to tackle it on their own.
The most important one…be willing to listen to their stories (even if it’s for the fifth time) and validate the range of emotions they are feeling.