Unapologetic Parenting

S3E1 Choosing To Laugh At Their Behaviors

Welcome back to Unapologetic Parenting, the podcast where we say the quiet parts out loud about high-conflict co-parenting, blended families, and the family court system—and then talk about what…

S3E2 Blind To Themselves

Welcome back to Unapologetic Parenting, the podcast where we take an unfiltered look at high-conflict co-parenting, narcissistic dynamics, blended families, and the realities of family court—without…

S2E5 You Can't Coparent with a Narcissistic Ex

In this revealing episode of Unapologetic Parenting, host Carl Knickerbocker tackles the all-too-common struggle of trying to co-parent with a narcissistic ex, and why it often feels utterly…

S2E4 You Are Not Weak For Staying Too Long

We hear mixed messages about leaving relationships all the time.  If only you were stronger, you would have left sooner.  If only you were stronger, you would have stayed longer and tried harder. …

S2E3 Why The Court Treats The Abuser Like The Victim And The Victim Like The Abuser

Hypothesis: the heart of so many of the family court’s judgment errors boils down to the emotional illiteracy of the lawyers, judges, therapists, and other paraprofessionals attached to the…

S2E2 When Court Ordered Coparenting Is Not In Anyone's Best Interests

Court-ordered coparenting is pretty much doomed to fail when one of the parents is highly narcissistic.  When the courts take a one-size-fits-all approach to coparenting expectations and standards,…

Don't Wast Your Life Arguing With Those Who Believe Their Own Delusions and Lies

Mantras For Dealing With A Narcissistic Coparent

We begin with the principle (the fact) that the narcissist's words and actions are caused by their disorder...not by you.  Their words and actions are disordered, not personal.From there, we focus…

S1E20 Uncomfortable Child Exchanges

Child exchanges can be uncomfortable and tense...been there! This episode discusses several potential remedies and rules of thumb for conducting child exchanges with a high-conflict or disordered…

Teaching Your Kids About Narcissists

We do not teach out kids about narcissism, borderline, and other disorders because of their other parent.  We teach them about high-conflict individuals and about the importance of standards and…

S1E19 How Not To Get Baited In By The Narcissist

Narcissists seek attention, plain and simple.  They thrive off of baiting others into conflict and needless interactions.  The same generally goes for Borderlines and other various disordered…

What To Document To Protect Your Sanity

When we deal with high-conflict and disordered coparents, it is vitally important to document certain things and collect data.  In this episode, I discuss the importance of tracking data to establish…

Handling The Narcissistic Parent's Lies And False Accusations

Narcissistic coparents, as well as Borderlines and other similarly disordered individuals, have a nasty habit of making up lies, fictitious events, and false allegations. Those of us who have dealt…

Getting The Court To See The Narcissist For Who They Are

Can we get the court to see the Narcissistic coparent for who they truly are? Most likely not, especially since the Family Court System is 1) not equipped to handle mental health matters 2) is…

S1E17 Covert Narcissists

We are generally well aware of what overt narcissists look like, but narcissism can manifest in different ways, including the covert or vulnerable narcissist.  This episode touches on the traits of…

S1E18 Divorce Does Not Define You

ou are not defined by your divorce experience. Your value as a parent is not determined by a custody schedule. What your ex says and does is not a reflection of your worth.Shared custody does not…

When The Kids Are Failing School At The Other House

When The Kids Are Failing School At The Other HouseOften times when we step in to bail the other parent out, we are enabling them to continue failing as parents. We think we are helping the kids, and…

S1E16 Preparing for Crazy - AKA Preparing for The Ex's Lies

If you haven't discovered it already, many people seem to have a near limitless capacity to make stuff up and lie, especially in the divorce and coparenting context.  This episode digs into these…

When The Other Parent Sucks At Being A Parent

It is difficult, if not impossible, to comprehend parents who literally do not show up for their kids...especially when that absentee or negligent parent is the other parent of your own child.Many…

S1E15 Divorce Battle On Multiple Fronts

For those of us who have gone through the divorce process, we often figure out fairly quickly that there are more adversaries than just the ex.  We are up against the ex as well as their divorce…