If you can work cooperatively with your spouse through the end of your marriage, it's better all round. Better for your emotional health, better for your kids and absolutely better for your wallet.

But that's not always possible especially when there's been domestic abuse, whether it's physical. emotional or financial.

Abuse makes ending a relationship much, much more difficult. We know that on average it takes a victim seven attempts to leave an abuser before staying away for good. We also know that the risk of being killed increases 75 percent when a woman tries to leave her batterer.

Those are somber statistics.

Getting a protection order is one way of shielding yourself. So what is it, when would you get one, how do you get one and how safe does it make the world for you?

Joining Mandy for this Conversation is Karen Covy, Karen is a divorce attorney turned divorce adviser and coach. Karen offers a Divorce Road Map program - find out more at her website, https://karencovy.com.

You'll find a synopsis of this Conversation at Mandy's blog at https://sincemydivorce.com/will-your-divorce-be-safe-without-a-protection-order.

DOMESTIC ABUSE HOTLINE: 1-822-799-7233