Welcome to section three, where you will be introduced to the second topic in the course: Dealing with Financial Separation. In this section, we are going to look at some of the different steps along the path of separation.

We will be examining some of the emotions around financial separation, how the children react to financial issues, the stages of separation, talking about money matters and making decisions in the best interests of the children. There’s a lot to cover, so let’s get started…

Separation is process that affects a person’s physical health, mental health, emotional health and financial health. These aspects are interrelated and each one impacts the others.

For example, at the time of separation a person could be feeling shock or disbelief. Physically this may be present as nausea, an inability to eat, lack of energy, and/or difficulty sleeping. Mentally the person may feel unable to focus, be easily distracted, easily confused, unable to remember things and unable to make decisions, including financial decisions.

Each person might be at a different stage in the separation process. Sometimes the  person who decides the relationship is over will have gone through a great deal of the emotional process before the other person. While the initiator is ready to move on, the other person may still be in shock and disbelief.

When people are going through the process of separation, it affects their ability to take in information, their understanding and ability to process the financial separation, and their ability to make financial decisions.

It is important to take your time before making financial decisions.