I hate to be the devil’s advocate here but from what I’ve seen you are probably right and your son will forever be affected. As I grew up I can think of some friends I had that came from 2 broken families in particular. I hung out with several brothers from both families and actually I still do to this day. In one case the mom walked out and in the other case the dad walked out. In both cases the lines were drawn and the guys I hang out with took sides with the LBS. Now almost 30 years later those lines are as clear as ever and some of these guys are nearly 50 years old. There have been a few isolated victories where a truce has been made with siblings that took the other side but for the most part the lines are still drawn and not crossed.
I’m sure there are exceptions but it most likely takes an effort on the part of the parent to make amends. I don’t see my EX doing that with S17 anytime soon. She seems to think he will just “wake up” one day. I think she needs to take the initiative and make peace if she wants to have a relationship with her son and the longer she waits, the harder it’s going to get. It’s sad but for what it’s worth, that’s what I see.
ALL
"Life may not be the party we hoped for... but while we are here we might as well dance!"
