How to Handle Social Media with Divorce

Social media has come to play varied and important roles in most of our lives, and if nothing else, it’s a great way to let off steam and turn to something outside of ourselves. If you are going through a divorce, however, social media can become a trap. The fact is that if there is any potential that your divorce may become contentious – or if it already is – your ex is going to be monitoring your social media activity, and now is likely the perfect time to take a social media break. Discussing your concerns with an Illinois divorce attorney today is an excellent idea.

Feel Free to Vent

If there was ever a time that you might need to vent – and that it might actually help – it’s while you are going through a divorce. And while you shouldn’t beat yourself up for telling it like it is, you should pay close attention to the venue. Save your excited utterances for friends, family members, and people in your circle of support whom you really trust – and make it your policy not to post them on social media platforms.

How Private Are those Settings – Really?

While it’s true that you can adjust your privacy settings on social media, it’s important to carefully consider how effective doing so really is. Let once online, always online be your mantra. If you, for example, post a divorce rant privately, you lose utter control of who is going to have access to that post. Screenshots make permanent preservation very convenient. Further, you and your soon-to-be-ex are very likely to share friends and acquaintances, and it isn’t hard for a post to be inadvertently shared by a private recipient (with no malicious intent whatsoever). If you don’t post, it can’t come back to haunt your case. 

Points to Consider

Posting on social media has become second nature for many of us, and you may not even give your posts that much thought at this point. This is why it’s important to consider the following:

• Even a mildly worded post can hurt your children, and there is no reason to believe that such posts won’t come back to them. Further, such posts can affect the court’s opinion regarding your child custody arrangements (if it finds that you fail to consistently act in your children’s best interests).  
• Pictures say a thousand words, and if yours depict a lavish lifestyle, it can send a strong message that you are doing just fine financially. 
• Your posts and photos – whether inadvertently or not – may incite your divorcing spouse to increase divorce conflict, which is not in you or your children’s best interests. 
• Posting about a burgeoning new relationship is a terrible idea, and even if you think you are being subtle, you should rest assured that you very likely are not. 

Speak with an Experienced Illinois Divorce Attorney Today

The savvy Illinois divorce attorneys at Arami Family Law, Inc. are standing by to help you, so please don’t wait to contact us today.