Does Having a Mental Health Condition Impact Timesharing Arrangements in Florida?

More than one in five Americans live with a mental health condition, according to the National Institute of Health (NIH)[1]. This encompasses a wide variety of conditions ranging from having a phobia to schizophrenia. If you live with a mental health condition and are going through a divorce, you may be worried about losing access to your children.

The primary motivation of the Florida courts is to create a timesharing arrangement that is in the best interest of the child. This includes meeting the child’s physical and emotional needs. In situations such as this, the court will rely on mental health evaluations of the parent to determine if they can meet the child’s needs. Typically, a licensed psychiatrist or psychologist conducts the evaluation. In addition to meeting with the parent, the evaluator will meet with the child and other key influencers in the child’s life.

Other factors related to the mental health condition that the court considers are:

• Compliance with medication and therapy
• Incident history (such as needing the police to be called or hospitalizations)
• Ability to care for the child
• Impact of the condition on the child

Possible outcomes based on the results of the evaluation as well as the other evidence that both parties provide include:

• Equal time sharing: This is a common outcome if the parent with a mental health condition is stable and compliant with treatment.

• Majority time sharing for the parent without a mental health condition: This outcome occurs if the mental health condition causes the parent to have difficulty with maintaining a consistent schedule or has limited periods of minor instability. In this situation, the affected parent typically has overnights on weekends, breaks, holidays and some other days.

• Daytime visitation: This occurs when the parent is often unstable or unpredictable or if the court has concerns about the safety of the child during the night.

• Supervised visitation: If a parent is noncompliant with treatment, has a history of making unsafe choices, or has symptoms that impair judgement, the judge may order a supervised visitation schedule. The visitations usually occur at a visitation center or at a neutral location (not at the other parent’s home).

• No contact: This is a rare outcome that only occurs if the parent exhibits psychosis or violence and poses an immediate risk to the child. For this outcome, as well as the others, if the parent’s mental health improves, the courts will often increase their visitation and/or level of visitation.

If you live with a mental health condition and are concerned about losing access to your children, contact Troy Legal. Our compassionate attorneys will fight for you to receive a fair timesharing arrangement that supports your relationship with your child.

Troy Legal, P.A. was founded in 2009 and serves clients throughout South Florida. Troy Legal, P.A., specializes in Marital and Family Law, providing reputable legal services for prenuptial and co-habitation agreements, paternity cases, adoption matters, alimony and child support, time sharing and parenting plans, drafting of qualified domestic relations orders (qdros), mediation services, equitable distributions, collaborative law, post-judgement modification and enforcement, domestic violence cases, and dissolution of marriage or divorce.  Troy Legal, P.A. is dedicated to serving clients through compassionate and aggressive representation, while upholding the highest degree of ethical standards.

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[1] NIH. Mental Illness – National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Accessed September 1, 2026.