“Slow down and talk about everything before making any big moves. Trust me, I wish that we had. We were so excited to be a family but it would have saved us a lot of hardship if we discussed our expectations at the beginning.” A mother who has been parenting in a blended family for over 10 years shared this quote with us when we asked her about parenting in a blended family.
We at the Parent Alliance celebrate all family structures and also recognize that they all have a unique set of challenges and strengths. That is why we sat down with a group of parents, step-parents, and stepchildren to hear what went right for them, what they wish had been done differently, and what they learned along the way.
All of the great tips that they shared with us were then turned into our brand new tip sheet The Unique Challenges of Parenting in a Blended Family. It was important to us to get a wide array of perspectives because we know that the experience is very different for all parties; parents, step-parents, and children. We got the chance to speak with individuals who brought children into their new family structure, individuals who joined a family but had no kids prior to the relationship, and individuals who entered a blended family where both parents had children.
Each of these scenarios is very different to navigate and it was important that they were all represented. We also know that children can be deeply impacted by how the transition of becoming a blended family goes so we loved getting to speak with adult stepchildren who had a lot of insight to share. Everything from what to communicate about ahead of time, to handling and addressing sibling resentment is covered in the tip sheet. As with all of our tip sheets; read through it and adapt the tips to your family dynamic. There is a huge disclaimer at the top of the tip sheet however we cannot mention it enough; If your previous relationship involved abuse of yourself or your children ignore or adapt these tips to your situation. The safety and mental health preservation of you and your children are more important than anything mentioned.
To access the tip sheet click the button below.