Divorce Help: on the cheap

Where to get multiple resources for very little dollars to help in your divorce.

The answer is not on the internet.

It’s in your local library. For free. All you need is a library card. And we are not being funny with this post. It seems the popular “go-to” option for people is searching the world wide web. In law, particularly in divorce, that is hazardous behavior.

We always advise against behavior that is hazardous. Law is based on where you live, not the glitziest website you land on.

You can click on fancy sites and read that there is no such thing as spousal support. You would be in the USA somewhere reading about that. However, in Canada, everywhere, spousal support is the law. You need to be very careful of the internet. Even within Canada. The laws about living together and the legal implications on your assets are very different, for example, in Manitoba than they are in Ontario.

We urge you to go to your local library and start there.

No, a library is not as convenient as sitting at home and surfing the web. We agree with that. You have to get out of your home and go to the library. Yes, it is a public building but you may be surprised to know that librarians get asked a lot of questions of every sort. We know this as we have family members (yes, plural) who work in them. Almost nothing surprises them and they have more answers than you may think. Their discretion is also above and beyond. They will not loudly announce, “Oh, Mr. Smith, yes, divorce books are right here!!”. No fear of that.

There are divorce books there that can help with every aspect of the ending of a relationship. Things such as “How to talk to your kids about divorce”, “Parenting through divorce”, there are resources for your own mental health on managing the divorcing process and even books on food and physical exercise when going through divorce. There are guide books on Canadian Law and “how to survive your divorce”, essential guides to children and separation and guides of all sorts.

They will surprise you at your library. You may believe they just have novels and some books on local history. Not so.

Even a little one like we have in Almonte, Ontario. You may not know that even little isolated libraries all have digital resources. You can download any book for free. Yes free. It works the same way as the library in that you get the book for a couple of weeks, then it just vanishes off your phone or e-reader, but it’s free. Which means, even if you live in a tiny far off spot, you can still access all the books. Plus, if they cannot get the book online for you to e-read it, they can request a loan from another library and have it shipped to your tiny library.

Essentially, your library can access the entire province. I have had library loans from Windsor, all the way to tiny Almonte. That’s the power of your local library and your tax dollars in action.

Our recommended preference is go to your physical local library. The reason is the librarians. If your main concern is one topic, they can put you in front of the relevant book before you know it. They will do it politely, respectfully and quietly. You will likely get a smile too. You never know, they may already been through it themselves.

The most important part of separating is getting educated on all the components that are touching your life now. Whether that is parenting, child support, cash flow, your business, your family home, debts or other worries like mental health, stress and how to manage those.

Get to your library.

If you still have questions, click “Book a Consult” with us and we can give you targeted answers. We would also love to hear that you read a book from your library before you called us.