Divorcing Mom Tip #5: Follow your motherly instincts. Hating your estranged spouse’s behavior is understandable. If you are a mom the last thing you want to witness is seeing your children hurt. That tends to make our mother bear instincts rise up and we become fiercely protective of our children's health and safety. If your husband has shown patterns of abuse you should seek legal advice to protect yourself and your children immediately. You may need a restraining order. You may need to take steps to prevent your husband from having access to the house, or to have supervised visitation with the children. Document any and all abusive, threatening behavior by your husband and file police reports when possible. Document, document document!!