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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Obviously the level of detail is age dependent, but in general I think children should be told.

It’s a parent’s job to prepare their kids for life. Part of life is knowing that people wear masks and you have to be aware of that because a high percentage of people engage in infidelity, addiction, financial impropriety, etc.

Encouraging your kids to be starry eyed and to believe fully in happy ever after isn’t beneficial to them. People with that mindset are the ones who get crushed and struggle to overcome the betrayals they might experience from partners, friends, colleagues, family members.[/quote]

My mom told me about my dad cheating and all it did was make me feel very uncomfortable she included me in their persona business. My dad was still a great dad, and we were close, and the whole thing was so squeamish and awkward for me.

It also didn’t help me not believe in “happy ever after” - if anything, the conflict between them in the years after their divorce made me want a “happy ever after” even more so he could take me away from it all. Those first couple breakups in my teens/early 20s were more devastating because if my parents couldn’t even put aside their conflict to love me, and a guy didn’t love me either, what did that say about me?

My xH cheated on me and I won’t tell our DD. She’s still too young to even know about sex, but when she gets older, I’ll explain that we weren’t happy together (which is true).

[b]I’m more interested in teaching my DD how to evaluate men for relationships[/b], consent, how to exit relationships, how to keep her own life so her life doesn’t revolve around a guy, etc. Her soon to be stepdad is also an amazing guy who sets an example for her on how men are supposed to treat women.

Now, her dad is a real piece of work who can be manipulative. I know trash talking him won’t do anything. Instead we talk about her feelings around it, what would she like to do, and let her come to her own conclusions.

So many people like to say cheaters are manipulative, and while that’s true in many cases, I’ve seen too many betrayed spouses who try to manipulate the children just as much into picking their side and shunning the cheater. That’s not good.

There are ways to teach children about the reality of the world without trashing their parent. [/quote]
Sounds like you aren't a very good candidate for this conversation. Your parents broke up over cheating. You chose another cheater. Why do you think your child will be any different? Maybe you should change your strategy here. Your next husband will likely cheat on you as well. [/quote]

Actually, I'm the perfect candidate for the question "did you tell your kids?" If you've never been in that situation, you have no business giving advice, and I've been on both sides.

We can never be 100% sure someone won't cheat. But what we can do is take things slow, vet people, leave when it's questionable, and protect ourselves. We can know what we'll do if it happens. We can choose to act in a rational way that minimizes damage for everyone, rather than getting emotional and dragging our kids into it.[/quote]

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