Families in Florida who are working out a custody agreement often go for what they know in the event that they have decided to have an even split of custody. This would mean that they alternate weeks between the parents’ homes. However, experts are beginning to come to the viewpoint that this may not be the most effective solution.
When children are apart from one parent for a prolonged period of time, it may cause them anxiety and adverse psychological effects. Moreover, there are various practical issues involved too. If the child is away for an entire week, there will likely need to be communication between the two parents which may be difficult if there is a contentious relationship between them. Further, there can also be scheduling problems for parents who need to make child care arrangements for a week straight.
Experts are encouraging parents in family law matters to be flexible in their thinking and consider arrangements other than the alternating weeks. Some arrangements can maintain the even split while moving the children between homes more frequently in order to reduce separation anxiety. Parents must consider how the proposed custody arrangement will impact the children, and that should be the guiding principle as opposed to having a rigid alternating week split.
A family law attorney may be able to assist parents in suggesting different ways to implement shared physical custody between the two parents in a manner that can both be beneficial to the children and the parents. Divorce is an emotional process and parties to it may have some difficulty thinking of flexible solutions given the amount of different directions in which they are being pulled. With the help of an attorney, they might be able to negotiate 50-50 custody on a different calendar than alternating weeks.