Telling your child about your divorce is one of the most difficult things you will ever have to do. Even so, you don’t want to hide from this conversation. You need to attack it head on, as that’s the best way to ensure that your son or daughter is on the same page as the process moves forward.

Here are some of the steps you can take when the time comes to tell your child about your divorce:

• Know what you want to say in advance. You should write down everything you need to discuss, as this will ensure that you don’t make any mistakes or leave out anything of importance.
• Block off time for this conversation. You never want to talk to your child about your divorce when there is something else going on, such as at a family dinner. This is an important conversation that deserves to be treated as such.
• Have an idea of what your child may ask you. It’s important to realize that your child will have questions, such as those surrounding how his or her life will change. You need to be ready for anything that comes your way.
• Be honest. Now is not the time to make up stories or say something that isn’t 100 percent true. You should be open and honest with your child about what’s going on and how things will change down the road. But say everything in an age-appropriate manner.

By doing these things you will find it much easier to prepare yourself for the divorce conversation with your child. It’s never easy to talk about this, but you don’t want to run and hide. This won’t make things easier on anyone.

Once you have this conversation, you can more easily turn your attention to the process itself and the steps you must take in order to protect your legal rights.