Love is complicated. Marriage is even more complicated in some aspects. Standing up at the altar, and committing to love the other person till death. It’s terrifying. 

However, there are many good aspects of love and marriage, if you find the right person. Love is beautiful, but in some instances loves fails.

 Marriage goes hand in hand with birth and children. And in 2019 more and more statistics of divorce have increased. 

In 2019, apa.org said, “up to 50 % of married couples divorce.” As a result , kids are struggling. Sophie Ramones, a sophomore at Laguardia highschool said, “sometimes I don’t know where I belong.” 

Mental Health 

A divorce can be a long and strenuous journey.  A lot of money and time can go into that process. 

Frequently, parents focus on the  divorce and subconsciously neglect their child. 

“ When my parents got divorced and I felt so alone. They became different people, I felt like it was my fault,” says an anonymous senior. She has battled with the feelings of rejection and guilt. 

The HuffPost said, “Children of divorced parents are seven times more likely to suffer from depression.” Though a divorce can be very hard on the parents, it can also take a toll on a kid’s mental health. It’s possible that the child won’t even notice how bad it is truly affecting them until they are in their adult life.

 Michelle stone, a 50 year old teacher living in New Hampshire, said, “I really regret not dealing with my emotions while I was younger. Now I have to face my battles, and to be honest it’s really hard.”  Michelle stone has had a hard time through her life dealing with the trauma that came with her parents divorce. She claims, “it was an ugly time in my life.” 

Watching your parents go through a hard time, and watching them struggle with each other can be very traumatizing and have long term impacts on kids. From a young age children are constantly picking up on signals around them and noticing things. As their brains are developing, they will grow to have certain problems or tramas depending on what they are exposed to. 

Divorcemag said, “children of a divorced-parent household are statistically 24% less likely to receive a high school degree. One research study reveals that children of divorce are also 26% more likely to drop out of secondary school. Suspensions and expulsion are also more common.” 

A lot of newfound responsibility comes with a divorce. Teens have to deal with going back and forth between each house, keeping up with a new schedule, and maybe even having double the chores. 

Samson Dakota, a freshman at Murrow High School said, “ it’s gotten to be so annoying, sometimes I’m unable to hang out with my friends on a Friday night because I’m forced to pack and bring my bag from my moms house to my dads.” The stress coming with this back and forth routine and making sure you have what you need at both houses can end up taking a toll on teens school work or social life or other crucial aspects of growing up. 

The Upside

Though divorce can be really hard, some teens claim there’s an upside. 

Emily Richards said, “ I feel like I’ve become more connected to my mom, and my dad. It’s been 5 years since my parents got divorced and I really feel like I have developed a much better relationship with the 2 of them.” Emily feels that because her parents are living separately, she now has a much better one-on-one time with each of them without having to deal with their fights or tension. 

Additionally, teens can learn from their parents mistakes and branch off to have a good love life of their own. If they experience a lot of hate ,fighting or anger between their two parents, they are prone to make sure they don’t experience that for themselves. 

Psychology Today said, “students actively strove to learn from their parents’ problems and thus had more successful subsequent relationships.” 

Divorce can be both painful and scary, but at the same time there is room for growth and improvements. Divorce does not only affect the parents, it has a huge impact on kids as they are growing up and developing both good and bad. 

For some kids divorce affects their mental health negatively. 

However sophomore Solomon Yentis claims, “ my mental health improved.” He believes that while his parents were together, there was  a lot of negative energy and stress surrounding him. So now that they got divorced, “they are on much better terms.” 

Similarly Ella Ross, a freshman in college, said, “after my parents got divorced, I finally felt like I could breath.” She found the moments leading up to the divorce much more traumatizing than the divorce itself.