Welcome to Plathville Barry and Kim battle for custody (which arrangement is better for the kids?)

Welcome to Plathville stars Kim Plath and Barry Plath have been going through a difficult divorce for the past few years, but custody arrangements for their younger children have not yet been agreed upon. Although Kim, who married Barry in her early 20s, has been through a lot in recent years, her time married to Barry was one long stretch of discomfort. The couple have nine children, and after dealing with serious issues during their marriage, many have wondered if they could continue to live it up after separating and sharing custody of their younger daughters.

Originally living within the confines of a fundamentalist religion, Kim, Barry and their children were cut off from the modern luxuries of the world. While this worked for them for a while, the Georgia natives eventually decided that fundamentalism was a little too stifling for the family and moved away from the extreme version of their religion. Despite still believing in the tenets of their Christianity, the Plaths reintegrated into a society their children had never seen. Welcome to Plathville season 6 features Kim and Barry’s strained relationship, but their custody arrangement seems more difficult than viewers realize.

Kim Plath Is Seeking Full Custdy Of Her 3 Minor Daughters

He Wants Sole Physical Custody of the Girls

Although Kim and Barry’s divorce has not yet been finalized, the former couple have discussed the best options for their three young daughters. The older Plath children have not been considered in the divorce, but Amber Plath, Cassia Plath, and Mercy Plath are all under 18 and will need adult care for the next several years. Although Barry and Kim have taken care of their six other children together, things have changed in their relationship over the past few years and it seems that Kim is no longer interested in them sharing custody of the three younger girls.

Court documents released to the media stated that Kim requested sole custody of her three youngest daughters with Barry. While there weren’t many details about the request, it’s clear Kim is not interested in sharing custody of their daughters with Barry. Instead, she hopes that she can take care of the girls herself, likely hoping that she can move around with her daughters as she pleases. Unfortunately, Barry has been shown Welcome to Plathville tries to maintain contact with his daughters despite the separation.

Barry has been a controlling parent in the past

His behavior has been modest

In the past, Barry has been the more dominant side of the marriage Welcome to Plathville. Since Barry has been married before his union with Kim, his behavior has always been something viewers are wary of. Domineering by nature, Barry was able to hide behind the facade of their fundamentalist religion for a long time. His dominant behavior wasn’t necessarily outward in the way that is usually emphasized on reality TV, but in a quieter and more subtle way. Barry made all the rules of the relationship as the mothern and pressured Kim to raise her children in certain ways.

Barry hid behind their fundamentalist religion as a backdrop and explained himself using the religion and beliefs the church taught him. Instead of admitting that he wanted his family to feel subservient, including his wife, Barry would make it clear that he was working according to the rules the church had taught him. Although Barry’s grip has seemingly loosened over the years as the Plath family has moved on to a more modern version of itself, her behavior has been difficult for the younger Plath children to deal with because they have more freedom with Kim.

Kim has suicidal issues

kids“> He cannot be trusted with children

Although Barry has been a difficult, controlling parent, Kim has grown more self-destructive in recent years. Kim’s behavior after breaking up with Barry changed dramatically because it felt like something had changed inside of her. Most of Kim’s time as the matriarch of the Plath family before leaving them outside the confines of fundamentalist religion was spent with her family and doing whatever Barry told her to do. When Kim chose to serve his family, he lost a lot of his identity and clearly felt the loss when the family moved back to mainstream modernism after fundamentalism.

After Kim and Barry broke up, her life slowly spiraled out of control. Not only did she not have the same role as a mother that she had been used to for decades, but she ended up getting little of the events, especially when she removed her role as a wife. Kim turned to substances to help her cope and was eventually arrested below the belt. Kim pleaded guilty and did community service, becoming more unstable over time. When she tried to regain the trust of her children, her behavior was anything but motherly or trusting.

Should Barry or Kim get full custody?

Neither seem to really fit

Although Kim and Barry have both had issues, both deserve to be present in their daughters’ lives. Although the minor Plath children have grown up with their parents together, they are now accustomed to a new normal of shuffling between households. While they may not be fans of moving around, Kim and Barry have done everything they can to keep the kids sane and give them as much as they can. so they don’t miss out on what it’s like to be raised like their siblings.

Although Barry was the controlling parent of the Plath children in his earlier years, it is clear that he has become more relaxed as a parent. Based on training and conditioning, Barry’s behavior has seemed relatively stable Welcome to Plathville. Kim, on the other hand, has shown dangerous, unpredictable behavior over the years she’s been on the show. While he may not be a monster, some consider him one, he has made mistakes just like Barry. Although she may want to single parent the younger girls, Welcome to Plathville‘s Kim and Barry both deserve to raise their daughter.

Welcome to Plathville airs Tuesday at 10:00 PM EDT on TLC.

Source: TLC/Instagram