Social media is a daily part of our lives. It’s second nature for us to post about our happenings, our triumphs, the successes of our kids and anything else we find worthy and important from our day. We tweet our thoughts, snap our pictures and share our videos. But if you’re in the middle of a divorce, it’s best to limit or stop using social media altogether.
And while divorce is also fairly common these days and it will be tempting to share the details of your split, social media in divorce opens a minefield where too much sharing and information can be taken out of context and ultimately hurt you.
Avoid posting what you might regret
To protect yourself and keep your affairs private, be careful about what you share. Once posted, information on the internet is hard to remove, so don’t post information you might regret later. Divorce brings high emotion and conflict. And while it might be tempting to tell others about a recent fight or the details of your custody agreement, give careful consideration to anything you’re tempted to share before you hit submit.
Avoid oversharing
As part of the divorce discovery process, attorneys will be looking for any information they can find about you to be used in their favor. Anything found online is admissible in court. If you’ve posted recent vacation photos or pictures of new expensive purchases, that information can be taken out of context and used against you. Even well-meaning and innocent information can be spun to appear negative and you don’t want to incriminate yourself.
Avoid venting
It will be tempting but choose the high road and avoid disparaging your ex on social media. Even if you aren’t “friends” with your ex through Facebook or Instagram, your mutual friends may be. There’s a good chance that information you post gets back to your ex or other family members. If your kids are old enough, there’s also a chance they could see the posts. Venting about your ex-spouse will only increase the chance for conflict and cause ill-will. Instead, find a trusted friend to vent to in person.
it will be in your best interest to take a break from your phone and favorite apps for a while. If you can avoid social media during your divorce and fly under the radar until your case is settled, you will help to minimize emotional damage and keep potential conflict at bay.
