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087: What Every Divorcing Parent Needs to Know About Toxic Stress and Children with Mindy Mitnick, Recipient of AFCC’s 2026 Distinguished Service Award

What if the way adults handle conflict during divorce could actually reshape a child’s developing brain? In this conversation, we talk with renowned psychologist and AFCC Distinguished Service Award recipient, Mindy Mitnick, about what toxic stress really is — and why every divorcing parent needs to understand it. Drawing on nearly five decades working with family courts, parenting time and decision making disputes, high-conflict separations, and complex parent–child dynamics, Mindy explains the crucial differences between positive, negative, acute, chronic, and toxic stress. She breaks down how ongoing conflict, fear, and instability can interfere with the development of the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain responsible for impulse control, judgment, and problem-solving. Krista and Mindy also look closely at everyday moments that quietly shape a child’s inner world: how (and whether) parents talk to kids about divorce, what happens when one parent is subtly undermined, and h...
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086: What to Look for in Therapeutic Resources for Your Children with Psychologist Dr. Kathleen McNamara

Join us for an insightful discussion with Dr. Kathleen McNamara, a seasoned psychologist with nearly 40 years of experience, as she shares her expertise at the intersection of family law and psychology. In this episode of Children First Family Law, we delve into the intricacies of child-parent relationships, emphasizing the need to separate relationship issues from parenting logistics. Dr. McNamara’s extensive career, spanning academia, clinical practice, and policy-making, enriches our exploration of child-centered strategies that place children’s needs at the forefront in legal contexts. We examine the impact of recent legislative changes and the complexities surrounding terms like alienation and gaslighting. Dr. McNamara advocates for moving beyond labels to focus on specific behaviors and their effects on family dynamics. The episode also highlights Kayden’s Law and the evolving role of best-interests attorneys – called Child Legal Representatives in Colorado – ...
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When Divorce Becomes a War Nobody Wins

Divorce is hard. That is not a controversial statement. What is controversial, at least within the family law world, is the idea that the hardest parts of divorce are often manufactured by the process itself rather than the conflict between the two people in it. Most families restructuring after separation face somewhere between 250 and 350 distinct issues to resolve. Very few of those issues actually require a judge. The ones that do get litigated tend to consume an outsized share of the family’s money, attention, and emotional reserves, leaving far less capacity for the harder work of actually raising children in two homes. The Hidden Cost of Litigation The financial argument against litigation is well-documented, but the emotional one rarely gets the attention it deserves. When a divorce is moderately contested, the average recovery time back to psychological and emotional baseline is roughly two years. A litigated divorce can stretch that to five or more. Those are not abs...
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085: Colorado Child Relocation Laws: How Moving Affects Custody and Parental Rights

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In today’s episode of Children First Family Law , Krista explores one of the most high-conflict areas in Colorado family law: relocation after divorce or custody orders. When one parent wants to relocate, whether within or outside the state, courts must decide what serves the child’s best interest, not the parent’s Krista walks through how Colorado handles relocation under C.R.S. §14-10-129, explains the difference between a parent’s right to move and the right to move with a child, and addresses a common fear: Is it kidnapping to move without permission? She illustrates these issues with real-world case studies, one in which a parent left without notice, and another in which a parent followed every step legally. This solo episode covers the legal process, emotional impact, court standards, and how to keep children at the center of difficult relocation decisions. It’s a must-listen for any parent facing—or fearing—a move. In this episode, you will hear: Relocation means any ...
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When Alcohol Is an Issue in a Custody Case, the Testing Has to Be Credible

When alcohol comes up in a custody or divorce case , the conversation tends to get complicated fast. One parent is worried. The other is defensive. And somewhere in the middle are children who are already aware that something is wrong. Krista Nash, founder of Children First Family Law®, has handled hundreds of sobriety-related family law cases, and her position is clear: the right monitoring tool, set up correctly, changes everything about how these cases resolve. Why Real-Time Monitoring Is Different Laboratory tests like PEth panels can show a history of heavy drinking over the past month. Urine tests capture a narrow window. Neither tells a family court whether a parent is sober right now, during parenting time, with the children in the car. Real-time alcohol monitoring fills that gap . Soberlink, the device most widely used in family court settings, delivers a timestamped, facial-recognition-confirmed breath test result to designated contacts within seconds. For child safety purp...
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084: Two Decisions That Will Define Your Divorce – with Family Law Icon Forrest “Woody” Mosten

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Most divorcing parents assume their only options are to fight it out in court or somehow manage a settlement on the courthouse steps. What if the entire premise is wrong? In this episode of the Children First Family Law Podcast, Krista Nash sits down with Forrest “Woody” Mosten, a California-based family law attorney, mediator, and author of Family Lawyer as Peacemaker , who hasn’t set foot in a courtroom in over 30 years and has built a thriving practice doing exactly that. Forrest brings decades of hard-won experience working exclusively in mediation and cooperative law, including serving as counsel in the largest collaborative divorce case in history. He shares why litigation tends to extend emotional recovery, how early resolution protects both children and family finances, and what parents should actually look for when choosing a lawyer. Families navigating divorce deserve to know that the war metaphor is optional. In this episode, you will hear: Why litiga...
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AI in Divorce — A Useful Tool With Real Limits

Parents going through divorce are turning to AI at every stage, from researching their legal options to drafting parenting plans to preparing for mediation. That shift is not going away. The question is whether families are using these tools in ways that actually protect their children, or in ways that create new problems while feeling productive. What AI Does Well in Divorce Used with intention, AI can be a genuine asset. It helps parents organize their thinking before speaking with an attorney, draft questions they would not have thought to ask, and understand the basic framework of their situation before spending a dollar on professional fees. Parents can also use it to run preliminary numbers on child support scenarios, get a clearer picture of what financial disclosures require, and identify gaps in their own understanding. The key is treating AI as a starting point, not a conclusion. It performs best when given detailed, specific information. A vague prompt produces a vague an...
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