How grandparents alienation is abuse and what alienated grandparents can do about it
Grandparent alienation is elder abuse as this affects the mental state of the grandparent and it is very important to deal with it.
Below are the consequences of the abuse
Feeling of loneliness
Being part of the family, it is the right of every grandparent to stay connected with their grandchildren but when children are isolated then it creates a feeling of loneliness for the grandparents.
Depressed
When Grandparents are not in touch with their grandchildren and they see other children spending time with their grandparents then it makes them depressed as they are missing those moments.
Frustration
Grandparents love their grandchildren and there is a natural bond between them but when children are kept away from them and Grandparents cannot do much about it it makes them frustrated.
Types of Grandparent Alienation
No or rare access
Not giving the access to the grandparent to see the children. This can happen directly when parents ask Grandparents to stay away from their grandchildren and the same way when asking children to stay away from their grandparents.
Indirectly, parents can make excuses for not going to their grandparent’s home and not involving children in family gatherings where Grandparents would be present.
Creating Bad image
Parents can create a bad image of their grandparents in the eyes of children by saying negative things about them and this will ultimately keep them away from them.
Causes of Grandparent Alienation
Bad relationship with Grandparents
If anybody does not have a good relationship with their grandparent due to certain reasons then some parents don’t want their children to get close to their Grandparents.
Child abuse
If someone has experienced child abuse then it creates fear in the mind of the parents so this makes them keep their children away from grandparents because they want to protect their children from what happened to them in childhood.
Smoking addiction
Sometimes grandparents are smoking addicts and they cannot stop smoking in the presence of children, this makes parents worried about the health of the children so to prevent the bad effects of passive smoking, parents keep their children away from the grandparents.
Threat to children
When parents believe that children are not safe with their grandparents then parents don’t allow their Grandparent to see their children.
Is grandparent alienation always unacceptable?
Grandparent alienation is only acceptable when there is a real threat from the Grandparent to their Grandchildren e.g. Grandparents have some kind of criminal background and were involved in some kind of child abuse so to protect the children it is sometimes necessary to keep them away from bad environment or surroundings.
What alienated grandparents should do about it?
Grandparents have the right to see their children so if they are the victim of alienation then they can get help from a professional counselor and before taking the help it is important to solve the issue at their end.
