Your ex-spouse is bad-mouthing you to your children, perhaps even trying to turn them against you. If you handle the situation ineffectively, you could lose your children's respect, their affections - even, in extreme cases, lose contact with them. The conventional advice is to do nothing, that fighting fire with fire will only result in greater injury to the children. But Dr Richard Warshak is convinced that this approach does nothing but leave parents feeling helpless. And the damage to children is considerable, particularly when warring parents enlist children as allies in the battle. The problems range from tainted parent-child relationships to a disturbance known as parental alienation syndrome in which children virtually disown one of their parents. DIVORCE POISON is the first book that offers specific advice to protect children from the results of their parents' animosity. It details how to distinguish different types of criticism, how and why parents manipulate their children, how to detect these manoeuvres, and how these practices damage children. Most importantly, it offers parents powerful strategies to preserve and rebuild loving relationships with their children.
Dr. Richard Warshak's groundbreaking studies, trenchant challenges to gender stereotypes, and passionate advocacy for children have made him one the world's most respected authorities on divorce and child custody. He has written two books, dozens of academic journal articles and chapters, and several Op-ed columns. Canada's Globe and Mail editorial called him, "A force to be reckoned with."
Dr. Warshak's first book, "The Custody Revolution" (Simon & Schuster), earned him an invitation to the White House; the fundamental reforms the book promoted have since become mainstream in family law. "Divorce Poison: How To Protect Your Family From Bad-mouthing and Brainwashing" (HarperCollins, 2002/2010) is the classic and best-selling parental alienation resource in the world. The Warshak Brief on relocation influenced a landmark ruling by the Supreme Court of California.
A graduate of Cornell University and Clinical Professor of psychology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dr. Warshak's work is featured in media worldwide including NBC Today, ABC 20/20, CBS Early Show, CNN, CTV, FOX & Friends, CourtTV, New York Times, USA Today, Macleans, Washington Post, London Sunday Telegraph, Toronto Star, SEMANA, National Public Radio, Time, and a PBS documentary. His DVD, "Welcome Back, Pluto: Understanding, Preventing, and Overcoming Parental Alienation," is the leading resource for families whose children struggle to stay out of the middle of parental conflicts. Dr. Warshak is a Huffington Post blogger, and you can also find his work at www.warshak.com and his personal blog, Plutoverse, www.warshak.com/blog.
