Within the children, evidence of parental alienation often manifests by an extreme alignment with the alienating parent and a level of hostility towards the alienated parent that is not in alignment with any action that parent has taken. The child who has been subject to alienation will often express derogatory views of the parent that they have been alienated against, refuse visitation with that parent, and withdraw from or stop communicating with that parent. Signs of parental alienation can often be seen in the parent’s (or parties) themselves as well. They typically manifest in overly hostile communications, absolute refusal to co-parent, failure to make the child or children available for visitation, making excuses regarding the availability of the child or children, refusing to engage in co-parent counselling, and (as discussed above) sometimes even actively coordinating extra-curricular activities for the children that knowingly and purposefully interfere with the other parent’s custodial time. What knock-on effects does parental alienation have for relations between the separating parents and the broader family unit? This is what I refer to as collateral fallout relating directly from the actions of the alienating parent, because the child of the alienated parent often has extended family – like other children (perhaps from prior relationships), grandparents, cousins, etc. When the direct relationship between the alienated parent and the child suffers, it usually follows that the extended family unit is also estranged from the child. It is not uncommon for the child who has been subject to any degree of parental alienation to transfer the negative feelings they have about the alienated parent to that parent’s extended family unit. As a result, the child is deprived of a relationship not only with the alienated parent but also that parent’s extended family, which unfortunately ends up hurting the child the most. Are there any specific signs of parental alienation occurring? There are often several specific signs of parental alienation that manifest when it occurs, both within the child him or herself, and in the actions and behaviours of the parents themselves, both in their interactions and communications with each other and often observable in the pleadings themselves. In my experience, I think parental alienation can often be inflicted both deliberately and to an extent accidentally. FEATURE OF THE MONTH 17
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