The impacts of a toxic marriage extend far beyond their influence on the couple. When a set of parents fights and argues constantly, such behavior has a detrimental effect on their children. Children of all ages are incredibly receptive to conflict, and parents often fail to realize how much a negative relationship shapes their children’s perception.
When a couple fights constantly, or even becomes violent, the children may learn that this behavior is “normal,” because their parents’ relationship is the first intimate one they witness. Most parents cannot bear the thought of their children ending up in the same type of toxic relationship. However, sadly, many children who grow up in such environments may repeat the same patterns.
As adults, many individuals may resent their parents for not ending a negative relationship sooner and filling their childhood with unpleasant memories. Many children grow up hearing their parents suffer endless cycles of fighting, crying, and making up. These adults often share that that things would have been much happier had their parents simply lived apart.
Rather than expose children to years of arguing, fighting, and tension, many parents decide that it is time to divorce and part ways. Although children will have to adjust to splitting time between two homes, they will adjust to the changes and will often be much happier throughout childhood and later in life than if they had grown up in a negative home environment where parents yelled and shouted several times per week. Parents must always put their children first, even if it means ending a bad marriage.