John M Palen, PhD, LCSW
847.967.1695
5225 Old Orchard Road Ste 1
Skokie, Illinois 60077
Collaborative Divorce
Collaborative Divorce utilizes specially trained child specialists, divorce coaches, lawyers and financial experts to help avoid costly and destructive court battles.
This problem solving approach offers you the opportunity to protect your children from the pain of being put in the middle of the marital conflict. It also makes it more likely that the co-parenting relationship can be preserved after divorce.
Children often feel lost and helpless when their parents’ separate. As a Child Specialist I provide children with the opportunity to discuss and better understand their thoughts, feelings and concerns. I can then”bring their voices into the room” and thereby provide parents and their collaborative attorneys with a more thorough understanding of the children's needs, and suggest ways to best meet them as we work together to develop a child focused parenting plan. In short, a neutral Child Specialist helps you and your spouse create parenting time plans and parenting agreements customized to fit the unique needs of your family.
I also work as a Divorce Coach with one or with both to the parents. A coach works with his or her clients to help them navigate the tough emotions associated with the many losses that divorce entails. In contrast to what often occurs in psychotherapy, a divorce coach does not focus on the past, but rather on the goals for the present and the future.