Divorce is an overwhelming and traumatic event to endure. It is not only difficult and painful for the parents, but also for the child. Many studies show that divorce is equivalent for children to the pain of the death of the parent.

    Sammie Sterrett a student at Topeka West has been dealing with her parent’s divorce for six years.

     “Divorce just sucks. It screws people up,” Sterrett, 9, said.

    Blink-182’s famous song “Stay Together for the Kids” talks about how parents sometimes just stay together for the children and how it hurts kids even more when they get divorced when they are grown up. The chorus: “So here’s your holiday. Hope you enjoy it this time. You gave it all away. It was mine. So when you’re dead and gone. Will you remember this night, twenty years now lost. It’s not right.”

     Statistics say that nearly two-thirds of first marriages will end in divorce. More than 75% of divorced parents remarry and are more likely to fail in the marriage then the first. Many teenagers will go through a second divorce with their stepfamilies.

     Jackson Reed, whose parents have been divorced for eight years, thought it was really tough when his parents got a divorce. His mother remarried when he was 8 years old.

     “I’m happy my parents ended up getting a divorce. They really were not meant for each other, but I miss seeing my mother,” Reed, 9, said.

     Studies from Ohio State University show that kids of divorced parents are more likely to have difficulties in school, be more aggressive, more depressed, and more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol. However, many of these issues revolve around the ability of the kids coping skills and capability to handle difficult situations.

     Susan Humphrey-Jones, Division One Counselor, believes it is how parents deal with the divorce that depends on if the experience is positive or negative for the kids.

     “From what I see divorce mainly affects kids when parents aren’t getting along. If the parents can get along with each other it makes the whole experience easier on the children,” Humphrey-Jones said.

     The University of New Hampshire has many studies on divorce for adolescents. The best tool stated for dealing with divorce as a teenager is to try and relieve stress from the divorce by taking up a new hobby, exercising, etc. Also, learning to understand and accept divorce will ultimately make troubling times easier in the long run.