Tips to Using Social Media
Responsibly While Getting a Divorce
Going through a divorce is a stressful ordeal, and it might make you behave in unnatural ways. Learn how to use social media responsibly while getting a divorce.
Social media is now an inseparable part of our lives with more than 2.80 billion users online, making up about 40 percent of the world’s total population. Social networks nowadays are huge repositories that store the information of millions of people all around the globe.
Most of this information is personal about the users, meaning that your emails, profiles, and messages are becoming accessible by other people. This means you need to be very wary of what you are posting online and control this information to your benefit. Your activity on social media can have a favorable outcome on your divorce. Here’s how!
Be Mindful About How You Communicate
You have to be socially responsible while using social media by being mindful in using common sense and good manners. You need to have a polite approach, be considerate to the other person’s feelings, and maintain honesty about the information you share. You need to build a positive image by being socially active in a positive manner through social media. You can achieve this by sharing truthful and positive comments while your divorce proceedings are going on.
Be mindful to not use any direct negative comments about your spouse. Use a neutral tone instead while sending messages and stating comments. Deleting comments or posts might not always help as nothing truly gets deleted for good on social media, and it just might resurface at the most inopportune moment. Don’t let your emotions get the most of you, and maintain polite and neutral communication with your spouse.
Entering a New Relationship During the Divorce Proceedings
Filing for divorce means you are still married, with your marriage not yet dissolved. So you need to be mindful about issues such as getting involved in a romantic relationship with someone else. Your lawyer will generally advise you to refrain from dating someone else before you are divorced, as otherwise, your spouse may accuse you of cheating. If you aren’t willing to wait till the divorce is final, maintain a low profile about dating someone else on social media.
Posting photos with your new date is not a good idea, and you should encourage them to do the same. Commenting romantically on each other’s posts may also be disadvantageous. Limit any such activity that might be used by your spouse against you in the divorce proceedings.
If You Are Expecting to Receive Financial Support After Divorce
One might gain financial support during a divorce if the court decides that there is a significant need. This is decided considering a few factors that are not always very straightforward. This is why you need to be fairly conscious and aware of what you are discussing with other people, especially on social media. You should refrain from bragging about new purchases on social media while your divorce is ongoing. Your spouse’s lawyer may use your pics of trips to expensive restaurants to reduce your claim for financial support.
Is a Custody Battle on the Line
If you have minor children and you have filed for divorce, the painful question arises of which parent will win custody of the child after divorce. An amicable divorce can take care of such sensitive issues, but if couples don’t know how to file an uncontested divorce, things might get stagnated. A judge might get involved and make the call if you are not going for an uncontested divorce. How you portray your life on social media has a huge bearing on your chances to obtain custody of your child.
Don’t post photos of alcoholic beverages being consumed at parties or corporate events. The opposing lawyer might use this to make a case of unfit custodial parenthood in your case.
The best interest of your child is the primary consideration of the judge, so they will award custody to the parent they deem to be fit. Hence you should portray on social media that you are a responsible and caring parent who loves to spend quality time with the children.
You can upload pics and videos of loving moments that you have spent with your child. The judge might get persuaded to rule in your favor when he sees that your child loves to spend time with you, and you can provide them with a loving and caring environment.
Use Valid Information Your Spouse Shares on Social Media
You may be greatly benefitted from the posts, comments, or photos that your spouse shares over social networks, although they might seem insignificant at first glance. You don’t need to look for skeletons in the closet or stalk your spouse’s every move on social media, but you can always watch out for public posts made on platforms such as Reddit, Twitter, and YouTube. If your spouse has made offensive comments toward you or if you have videos of their unworthy behavior, show them to the judge as evidence. This will make the case stronger on your behalf. Be careful about not obtaining any information illegally. Not only are they not admissible in courts, you actually might find yourself in quite a bit of trouble for hacking or other crimes.
Keep Your Information Secured
It is very difficult nowadays to keep things secret or private with the advent of the digital age. Protecting the privacy of your data is important, even if you have nothing to hide, as it is very easy to manipulate and misrepresent information. So it’s a good idea to minimize access to sensitive data as much as possible during the divorce proceedings.
If your spouse has access to any of your social media passwords, change them. Request your friends and family to not post information about you online for a while. Adding new friends on Instagram and Facebook should also be put off, especially if you don’t know them well.
Summing Up
Social media can be both a blessing and a curse while you are getting a divorce. It all depends on how responsibly you behave and how you safeguard your information.
Being smart about using social media can benefit you in many ways and save you from many pitfalls that might steer the verdict in the other direction. So be responsible and be smart, especially until you finish the entire divorce proceedings.
