When making child custody determinations, courts look at what custody arrangement is in the best interests of the child. One less serious mental health condition that often comes up is borderline personality disorder. Virginia Divorce & Child Custody lawyer Robert Jeffries | Information and legal advice about Virginia Divorce. In order to win custody, a father must prove in a divorce trial that the mother of the child has bipolar disorder, and also experiences mood swings that may put the child in emotional and/or physical danger. Each parent and child’s “beginning conversation” about bipolar disorder will be different depending on the child’s age and ability to manage the information. Another aspect that could factor into a mother’s case is seeking treatment for her bipolar disorder. However, bipolar disorder – characterized by severe mood swings from depression to elation and mania – is often successfully treated with therapy and medications. From the label you can learn the name of the pharmacy and the prescribing physician. She specializes in family law and estate law and has mediated family custody issues. Bipolar disorder is not just a single disorder, but a category of mood disorders marked by periods of abnormally high energy and euphoria, often accompanied by bouts of clinical depression. Mental illness doesn’t automatically disqualify a parent from getting custody.It will, however, likely influence the decision.
The father was unable to care for the children and no other relatives were in a position to take custody. For example, in the manic phase, a woman with bipolar disorder might act impulsively without thinking through the consequences of her choices. Mental illness such as bipolar can factor into the court’s decision, depending on your specific circumstances. When everything is considered together, the judge will award In a custody dispute, the issue is not so much whether you're ill, but what effect your illness has on your child. I had one case where it was quite clear to me the mother had bipolar disorder. So what can a Bipolar parent do when facing a custody battle? Mental illness is a factor in determining child custody, but its impact on your child could be offset by other factors such as the relationship you and your wife have with your child, what the preference of the child is, and the closeness of each of you to your child’s school and other activities. Custody disputes involving mental illness often end up being decided on the specific details of each individual case.Beverly Bird is a practicing paralegal who has been writing professionally on legal subjects for over 30 years. For example, if a mother has a documented history of violent behavior that is associated with her bipolar manic state, the court may award the dad sole physical custody since that is in the child’s best interest. Second, the parent can insist upon a forensic psychological evaluation. Your spouse would have the burden of proof in a divorce trial to establish not only that you suffer from bipolar disorder, but that when you experience mood swings, it endangers your child either mentally, emotionally or physically. However, mothers with bipolar disorder can experience significant impairments. This illness is much harder to prove and much hard to treat. Be candid about the issue and be realistic about how it affects your ability to be a good parent. The courts generally take any mental disorders extremely seriously when it comes to child custody cases. If mental illness threatens your child’s wellbeing or standard of care, this could be grounds for modifying a standard custody agreement. If a mother’s mental illness or bipolar disorder is so extreme that she can’t manage her own personal affairs, and/or she needs a guardian or a form of in-patient hospitalization, this may carry a lot of weight against her when it comes to a legal custody battle. It was all due to the impulsiveness that the illness caused her to exhibit. I require regular changes to my complex medication regime. Journal of Affective Disorders , … But most courts tend to err on the side of caution and normally rule against the parent suffering from a mental illness.It’s important to remember that child custody laws vary from state to state, and your family law attorney should be able to best advise you on the steps you need to take to win custody of your child if their mother suffers from bipolar disorder. When a marriage breaks down, child custody is a topic of great concern—especially for people struggling with mental illness. Any of these effects of bipolar disorder can make it difficult for a woman to obtain custody during a divorce.Bipolar disorder is a subset of mood disorders that is marked by two types of symptoms — depression and mania. In a custody dispute, the issue is not so much whether you're ill, but what effect your illness has on your child.
I have had many cases where the mother has had a long series of breakups resulting in the children being repeatedly uprooted and moved because she has broken off yet another relationship.