For many members of a family, the stress of divorce can be quite high. For parents this is especially true. The sense of loss and, in many cases, the loss of being a parent is too great. For many parents this means a sense of loss and often a great depression in the father. What this does to the father’s worldview is quite obvious, as the sense of betrayal and hopelessness can be overwhelming. All of these events in a parent’s life can lead to what is called the disenfranchised parent syndrome.

What are the results of the disenfranchised father syndrome?

For many parents, the first and immediate result is a depression that impairs the father’s ability to make a contribution to the world around him. Later, if left untreated, this can lead to other physical illnesses such as heart attacks, strokes, and other cases where the father will need to be hospitalized for a medical illness.

Most of the time, these events occur in a very hostile and conflictive environment. Having your life turned upside down by someone you previously cared about can be the most stressful thing a parent can go through. A hostile attorney in the mix surely only adds to stress and slowly weakens the father’s ability to deal with the world around him. This lack of ability to cope with the emotional onslaught of divorce can cause many men to freeze and freeze in their world.

Disenfranchisement of parents

For many men, the court system may seem the opposite. Many men believe that the courts are biased towards men and are too inclined to try to help the women in the family. They see the world through their own pain and not through any objective means. Many men can rightly say that they were deprived of their rights in court and elsewhere. However, that is not an excuse to stop living or pay child support.

What can be done about this?

For many men, the sense of loss from divorce is too much. That is where we can begin to attack this issue. Men’s support groups should be emphasized for both men and women. Emotional health must be considered for both parents. Without this consideration, many parents are going to have many health problems that they may not be able to get out of.