Why Are Mental Health Issues a Problem for Child Custody? Part 2 Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar Disorders

I expect that there are many people in the family court system who will ask, "Why should bipolar disorder be a consideration in custody?" The real question they should be asking is, "Why aren't we making bipolar disorder a consideration in custody decisions?" Parental bipolar disorder is known to have a negative effect on children when it isn't treated and bipolar disorder is known to carry a higher risk of breakup for relationships. Mood disorders and substance abuse disorders in general carry a substaially higher risk of divorce , with bipolar disorder and depressive disorder having some of the highest associations with divorce (Mojtabai et al., 2018). So there is a very high likelihood of encountering individuals with these conditions in a family court scenario. Many parents with depression and anxiety disorders are able to manage their condition and take good care of their children and it should be self-evident that substance abuse is a definite problem for custody, however bipolar disorder in particular presents a certain set of problems for parenting and custody that have been ignored by courts. 

Effects of Parental Bipolar Disorder on Children

Being raised by a parent with bipolar disorder is associated with more negative outcomes for the child.

Vasquez (2022) states: "The inconsistencies, conflict, and lack of safety can influence the child’s attachment to the parent (Chang et al., 2001). Research has demonstrated negative effects in children of parents with bipolar I disorder, such as poor interpersonal functioning within different settings including work, school, and intimate relationships; an impaired sense of self or identity; and mood disorders (Chang et al., 2001; Cook et al., 2005; Madey & Rodgers, 2009; Schore & Schore, 2008; Simeon et al., 2003)". 

Again, we are dealing with a situation that poses higher risk to the child, has an increased likelihood of showing up in family court, but is not recognized as a problem for parenting or co parenting by family law courts. When a couple can't agree on custody, they are sent to child custody recommending counseling and then if they can't agree there, the court goes straight to trial. There is no step where anyone stops to evaluate whether one or both parents might have significant mental instability. Essentially the courts are trying to solve problems created by parental personality and mood disorders with trial and mediation when those things will not address the underlying cause of the custody problems and then, of course, they are upset that the custody and coparenting disputes continue.

On the other side of the issue, parents who have bipolar disorder symptoms often know that they need help. (They are often struggling to take care of their own needs.) Vasquez (2022) cited the research of Diaz-Caneja & Johnson (2004)  which found that during custody and divorce proceedings (which, again, are likely to happen because of the strain that untreated bipolar disorder places on the relationship and on the family) mothers with bipolar disorder may fear losing custody if they seek help. A study by Diaz-Caneja and Johnson (2004) reported that mothers with BD identified their children as being a motivator to receive treatment in order to maintain child custody; but, they reported that others viewed them as being incompetent and incapable of providing adequate parenting, resulting in lower self-esteem in skills and avoidance of asking for support.This becomes a vicious cycle though, because the fear of reaching out to professionals and others for help can limit the parent’s support systems and socialization, which in turn keeps impacting the children and their own functioning. Parents with BD may also feel worthless when depressed and have grandiose beliefs about self when manic, resulting in a discrepancy between self-descriptions and ideals, which is more prevalent during a depressed state, but also present throughout remission periods as well as noted by Knowles et al. (2007) (Vasquez, 2022).

If courts start with the premise that  parents who are going to trial in their divorce proceedings have a high likelihood of some kind of personality disorder or bipolar disorder, then it brings the "monster" out of the figurative closet. The scary specter of having bipolar in a divorce is assumed to be a possibility and thus the parent with bipolar disorder doesn't have anything to gain by avoiding treatment. If psychological evaluations were an expected step in the divorce process, then the parent with bipolar disorder actually will look better to the court if he or she seeks help before being ordered to undergo an evaluation and being court ordered to treatment. The problem can be dealt with in the open instead of courts assuming that it doesn't exist at all while it continues to ravage the parents' and children's lives. Once again, co parenting apps, classes, etc. are not a treatment for mood or personality disorders.

References 

Mojtabai R, Stuart EA, Hwang I, Eaton WW, Sampson N, Kessler RC. Long-term effects of mental disorders on marital outcomes in the National Comorbidity Survey ten-year follow-up. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 2017 Oct;52(10):1217-1226. doi: 10.1007/s00127-017-1373-1. Epub 2017 Apr 4. PMID: 28378065; PMCID: PMC5846331.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5846331/

Vasquez (2022) Trauma and effects of being raised by a parent with bipolar I disorder: A theoretical approach utilizing internal family systems. (Dissertations, 685) [Doctoral dissertation National Louis University]. https://digitalcommons.nl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1736&context=diss