Thankfully, after decades of Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS) and Parental Alienation (PA) receiving scant attention and acknowledgement in the family law court system, positive changes are happening.
In the video below, seasoned litigator Jordan Trager announces his upcoming presentation, “Parental Alienation Cases—A Legal Perspective” concerning this insidious form of child psychological abuse and the deleterious effects it has on children traumatized by it.
Of particular interest to me, a father of three estranged children due to PAS/PA, are the long term effects of this pathology on their mental health. Sadly, the findings of many studies investigating these long term effects is quite grim. Trager mentions some of these negative outcomes beginning at timestamp 2:34:
“…a shorter life span, depression, anxiety, social withdrawal, aggression, acting out, low self esteem, insecure attachments, substance abuse disorders, fears and phobias, the inability to trust themselves and others, poor academic performance, poor physical health, neurological damage, the inability to think critically, and developmental delays.”
Children coming out of, or currently in, a high conflict divorce situation and recognizing they are plagued by some—or all—of these issues require professional counseling and therapy with experts in the field of PAS and PA. I believe seeking guidance from a mental health expert who is not knowledgeable and experienced with these types of complicated cases may do more harm than good for those children dealing with these twin pathologies.
My heart breaks for these children—all of them. They are innocent victims who have been brainwashed and robbed of so much which life has to offer.
Please, seek the help your hurting hearts need to begin the difficult path of healing.