Infants and toddlers require a lot of care. These young children thrive on routine and familiarity. This makes it difficult for parents of these young children to come up with a child custody order when the little one’s parents aren’t living together any longer. There are some specific points that must be addressed in these cases.
The child’s nutrition has to be considered. If the child is breastfeeding, especially during the newborn period, there is a chance that the mother will need to be the primary caregiver until the child is able to take a bottle. Once the baby can drink from a bottle and the woman’s milk supply is established, the woman might be able to pump breastmilk and provide that milk to the father for the baby.
Another concern is the child’s attachment to different people. While these young children can form bonds with multiple people, they often start to have separation anxiety when pulled away from their primary caregiver. This can be traumatic when the child is having to go back and forth between parents, so it must be considered when coming up with a child custody agreement. Nighttime might be an especially difficult time for the child.
When parents of young children can work together to make sure that the child’s needs are met, the child is the one who benefits. This can be complicated when the relationship ended on a bad note. Still, you will have to deal with your ex for your child’s entire childhood. Starting things off on a positive note might set the tone for the rest of those years.
Source: Psychology Today, “Custody Arrangements for Very Young Children,” Robert Emery, Ph.D., accessed March 02, 2017