breakpleh

Because your kids still need both of you—even if you’d rather launch your ex into space.

So, you broke up.
Maybe it was ugly. Maybe it was quiet.
Maybe they cheated. Maybe they changed.
Maybe you’re still waking up some mornings feeling like your chest got kicked in.

But here you are. Still standing. Still parenting.
And now you’ve got to figure out how to co-parent with someone who broke your heart.

It’s like being asked to team up with the person who dropped you midair—while you’re still trying to rebuild your wings.

Deep breath. You can do this. You don’t have to like your ex.
You just have to like your kid more than you hate your ex.

Let’s talk about how to do that without losing your mind (or your dignity).

Step 1: Shift Your Role (from Partner to Co-CEO of Your Kid’s Life)

You’re not a couple anymore. You’re co-parents. Business partners. CEOs of Kid Inc.

Your job now? Making decisions that serve your kid’s future—not your past feelings.

Start asking:

• “What’s best for our child right now?”
• “What environment will help them feel safe?”
• “How can we make this transition easier for them?”

Treat it like a job. Professional. Minimal drama. Eye on the goal.

You don’t have to like the co-founder. You just have to keep the business alive—and healthy.

Step 2: Create a Communication Strategy That Doesn’t Involve Screaming (or Silence)

Co-parenting after a breakup requires boundaries with communication. Especially if emotions are still raw.

Options:

• Use co-parenting apps (like OurFamilyWizard or 2houses)
• Stick to texts and emails
• Keep convos kid-focused: drop-offs, schedules, school, health—not feelings

Helpful tip:
If you wouldn’t say it to a colleague at work, don’t say it to your ex in a parenting convo.

Not because they deserve kindness. But because you deserve peace.

Step 3: Make a Clear-as-Day Co-Parenting Plan

You don’t want to argue over bedtime every other week. Or who’s picking up from daycare. Or whether Halloween is your year or theirs.

Write. It. Down.

A good co-parenting plan includes:

• Custody schedule
• Holidays & special occasions
• Bedtime routines
• Rules about screen time, homework, etc.
• Emergency protocols
• Flexibility policies (with boundaries)

You’re not being extra—you’re being proactive. Clarity = fewer fights.

Step 4: Grieve in Private, Parent in Public

Here’s the raw truth: you’re allowed to be devastated.
Cry into your pillow. Vent to your bestie. Rage-text your therapist.
But don’t make your kid carry the weight of your heartbreak.

They don’t need to know your ex lied, cheated, ghosted, or gaslit.
They just need to know:

• “Both of your parents love you.”
• “You’re safe.”
• “This isn’t your fault.”

Keep the emotional mess in your safe spaces. Let your kid stay a kid.

Step 5: Expect Setbacks—and Give Yourself Grace Anyway

You’re going to mess up. Maybe you already have.
You’ll lose your cool. You’ll cry during a handoff. You’ll say something petty. (We’ve all been there.)

This is hard.
Parenting with an ex is emotional CrossFit.

You are unlearning your triggers while keeping a small human alive—and trying not to throw your phone across the room when your ex reschedules at the last minute.

The goal isn’t perfection. The goal is peace.
For your kid. And for yourself.

Real Talk: You’re Still a Damn Good Parent

You being heartbroken doesn’t make you a bad mom, dad, or caregiver.
You’re navigating grief and responsibility. Rage and routines. Pain and parent-teacher conferences.

That’s heroic.

You don’t have to get it right every time.
You just have to keep showing up.

Your child will remember the effort. The stability. The unconditional love.
They’ll see that you didn’t let heartbreak harden you—you let it reshape you into someone even stronger.

Feeling this?

Been there? Still in it? Drop a comment and share what co-parenting after a breakup has looked like for you on our socials.

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You’re not alone—and you’re doing better than you think.