When a large change happens in your life, you can expect to feel as if the floor has fallen out from under you. Everything you once knew may have changed, which can be devastating.
Despite the new dynamic of your every day, life goes on and so must you.
In the face of an event such as divorce, many people find that moving on is much easier said than done. The ending of a marriage is one of the biggest and most severe changes one can go through, and you may soon learn that you can’t process it alone. While some have their parents, their friends, siblings, and even co-workers to help them get through a divorce and its aftermath, others may not be so lucky.
If you’re a recently divorced person living in or around Orange County and going at it alone, these 10 divorce support groups and meet-ups may be the outlet you’re looking for to move forward and begin truly healing.
1. The Huntington Beach Divorce Recovery Meetup
This divorce help group meets every Tuesday in Huntington Beach to help each member through the unique circumstances and pains of their divorce.
Self-described as friendly and caring, this group is one that contains over one hundred people ready and willing to walk with you through what is surely one of the hardest experiences of your life. This meetup is open to anyone struggling with divorce and invites them to come so that they don’t have navigate this pain alone.
2. Divorced Dads of Orange County Support Group
This is a divorce support group for dads. Whether you’re newly divorced or not, this divorce help group is open to all fathers who have dealt with divorce.
This group of 50 dads (and counting!) offers emotional support and friendship to fellow dads who are going through the same experience. They bond, enjoy cigars, and aim to meet once a month in Irvine as well as engage in fun events like mixers and barbeques. This group is a good mix of fun and support.
3. The OC Single Moms Club
This is a divorce support group for mothers who are looking to connect and fellowship with other single moms.
Whether you find yourself newly divorced, in the middle of a divorce battle, or a have been single for a long time, this group is for you. Together, these moms have created a community of love and friendship that aims to offer support, understanding, and compassion for women struggling through the same thing.
In addition to meetings, these moms enjoy girl’s nights, hikes, movies, coffee dates, and other fun activities.
4. County Catholic Divorce Recovery Meetup
This group offers special support for divorcees coming from religious backgrounds.
As if divorce weren’t painful enough, the hurt and stigma attached to it in religious communities can make it that much worse. This support group exists as a place for Catholic divorcees to learn how to heal, help their children cope, navigate dating again, and learn forgiveness in this hard time.
This group meets in Orange County and is open to new members in need of friendship, love, and understanding.
5. LA OC Single Parents
This divorce support group is for both men and women, newly divorced or not, with children.
The aim is for parents and their children to get together for fun activities as well as emotional support and love from families who are going through the same thing. In addition to fun events like the beach and the movies, there are also parent nights away.
6. Orange County Mindful Divorce Support
This group in Newport Beach aims to deal directly with the stress a divorce brings.
Divorce is often thought of as one of the most stressful events that can happen in a person’s life, and this divorce support group wants to help you find healthy ways to reduce any and all stress you may be experiencing. Through mindfulness and psychology exercises and activities, this group teaches members to actively deal with their stress and emotions connected to their divorce.
7. Divorce Care / Divorce Recovery
This particular support outlet is a program designed to help new and long-term singles deal with the repercussions of divorce.
The Divorce Care program offers tools and information to help you navigate separation and divorce while offering ways in which to move forward with your life. The Divorce care groups meet weekly to help members through the stressful business of divorce as well as offer friendship and community in Anaheim.
8. A New Beginning: The Orange County Divorce Support Group
This divorce help group based in Irvine is rather large, almost 800 members, and offers a new start for those who have gone through or are going through divorce.
In an effort to move forward, find support, and rediscover life in new ways, this divorce support group offers its members tons of opportunities to make friends, get back in the swing of things, find new hobbies and interests, and learn to eventually love again.
Various meetings are held each month, including open meetings, so anyone can jump in!
9. Divorce War Stories
This divorce help group in Newport Beach is one that especially focuses on the stories of divorce.
Part of healing is to talk through the pain, and this group offers a space to tell your story and hear the stories of others. It acts as a cathartic group activity that allows members to tell their stories and learn that, though they have their own scars, they are not alone.
Whether you’re going through a divorce or separation or have already gone through one, this space is for you.
10. Bitch & Wine
This cleverly named divorce support group is for single women who need a group of girlfriends to support them, love them, and encourage them through all the stages of divorce. This particular group meets up for wine at different restaurants on the second Monday of every month in and around Irvine. If you’re willing to listen to a few horror stories, you’re more than welcome to spill your own.
Divorce is one of the scariest, most painful events that can occur in one’s life, so don’t go through it alone. Being together in a community can help boost the healing process, offer outlets for the pain and worries you feel, and can bring many new friends and relationships into your life.
These ten groups can help newly divorced individuals in Orange County begin again while reducing the pain and heartache of a divorce. Browse the groups and consider joining one today. You can also create your own group through sites like Divorce Care and +SupportGroups.