How a Divorce Support Group Can Help You

Getting a divorce could have a profound impact on the rest of your life. Going through a divorce alone is not necessary.  Divorce can be an emotionally traumatic event, especially if your marriage involved conflicts that were heated and protracted.  Participating in a divorce support group could help you recover a sense of normalcy and even a sense of self.

A good divorce support group is a community of people.  While they begin as strangers, an appreciation and friendliness quickly forms.  After you join a group you soon sense that you are not alone.  There is comfort in the company and understanding of others.  Regardless of how many friends or family members you have, a support group can be a great ways to enhance your resources and find peers going through the same process.  

At a group meeting you can listen to the stories and experiences of others.  You can gain new insights and fresh approaches to the issues you face.  Although each divorce experience is unique, many people find that sharing their situation and listening to others brings relief.

There is something inherently healing about participating in a group.  It fosters a sense of belonging and connection that can be evasive during divorce.  The listening, sharing, and unconditional positive regard group members share can be especially healing for divorcing people whose relationships, particularly recently,  often lacked the gentle respect available in group.

Is a Divorce Support Group Right for You?

Divorce can feel lonely, alienating and stigmatizing.  Participating in a group can be antidotal.  By being with others in similar situations, your own situation begins to be normalized.  No longer must you feel like no one understands.  Often group members nod in recognition when they hear one another share.  

Instead of operating through this strange and confusing time in a vacuum, a support group can help orient its members, providing a point of reference that can help shape the individual’s experience.  

For all of these reasons,  I offer a divorce support group, open to clients and the community alike.  My co-facilitator is a colleague and friend, Sharon Buck, LCSW.  Sharon is a therapist specializing in processing grief.  Together we run the monthly support group at her office in Chester, NJ beginning at 7pm on the first Monday of the month.   I will include a link to the meet-up.  

A key way to help you through your divorce, and avoid the emotional and financial turmoil that come with litigation, is to have your divorce reach a resolution through mediation. If you want to learn more about divorce mediation, contact our office today.