Charting a New Course after Tragedy

Christine Whitehead knows all about second chances. When she was barely seven years old, her parents died five months apart of unrelated causes, she found herself at the center of a bitter custody battle between her maternal grandparents -- Hungarian immigrants who lived close by -- and her paternal aunts, whom she knew only slightly. After months in limbo, she was finally court ordered to the home of her aunts, where she found a loving home, even though her uncle had a secret drinking problem that plagued the household. Having lived through those life changes, she battled -- and beat -- anorexia on her way to law school. Today, she is a divorce attorney and author of the book Tell Me When It Hurts. “Although most divorce attorneys aren’t known for it, I really see myself as a specialist in helping people find their second chances in life,” Whitehead said. “I’m one of the few people who has actually seen a nasty custody battle from both sides -- first as a child, and now as an attorney and advocate for my clients. It’s never pretty, but if people work hard enough, both the parents and the children can each find second chances waiting for them at the end of the process.” Christine talks with Joyce about second chances, and will be taking calls from listeners.