Songs to Help You Cope with Divorce

Music is very powerful and during one of the hardest times in any family, it might make you feel less alone that perhaps someone out there understands what you’re going through.

You Don’t Bring me Flowers – Barbara Streisand and Neil Diamond

This song talks about the beginning of the end; when you realize that the other person no longer do those little things like bring you flowers anymore; those things that they used to do just because.

Honesty – Rodney Atkins

This song is about salvaging a marriage. After you realize that the flowers stopped coming, are you going to fight for your marriage? Is it worth fighting for? Are you and the family better off apart? It’s different for every family and person.

Family Portrait – Pink

Told from the point of view of a child living through the end of her parent’s marriage. It shows how the constant fighting affects a child.  They start to blame themselves. They feel like they can fix things if only they were better behaved. “It ain’t easy growing up in WWIII.”

Because of You – Kelly Clarkson

Another one from the point of view of the child. Kelly Clarkson looks back on her childhood and tries to  do things differently than her parents. “I was so young you should have known better than to lean on me.” Lesson learned: Don’t lean on your children for strength. They should be leaning on you.

Every Friday Afternoon – Craig Morgan

What happens after a divorce when parents no longer live close together. In legal terms, this is called a ‘removal’. Every time I do a removal case, it breaks my heart because unlike other custody cases, removal cases are binary. One parent always loses. There is rarely a right or wrong decision for these types of cases.

Every Other Weekend – Reba McEntire

Perhaps not the best song ever written but it describes perfectly the reality of joint custody.

Stay Together for the Kids – Blink 182

This song talks about how some parents will stay together for the kids but sometimes staying together hurts the kids more than breaking up.