FORT SMITH, Ark. -- Bullying, peer pressure, body image and drugs are all issues that teenagers and some children deal with every day.

According to television station KHBS, many children are juggling those daily pressures with divorce.

Brianna, Ben and Bailey Ault have been working to cope with divorce since their mother divorced their father.

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Counselors Help Kids Deal With Stress Of Divorce

But the children said that things are beginning to look up.

Their mother, Bethany Ault, is now married to a man who has three children from a previous marriage. Ault said she and her husband, C.W., have worked hard to make the transition comfortable for all of the couple's children.

"We just feel like we should be together, and that meant bringing the six kids together, too," Ault said. "It took a lot of time. It's not something that happens overnight."

Fort Smith counselor Bobby Collins has been a major part of the family's transition. He is the founder of "Step Carefully," an organization that helps children and parents deal with the strain of divorce and remarriage.

"Divorce never goes away," Collins said. "When the divorce happens, (the) child almost literally gets split in two."

Collins said that there are several important ways to help children and teens -- who are already dealing with stress at school -- deal with divorce. He said a parent must be careful to not disparage the husband or wife who they divorced.

"If your ex-husband was a rat, remember (that) that part of him still lives in your child," Collins said. "The biggest part for children of any age is that they not be put in the middle or become messengers or spies."

Counselor Kathryn Willadsen said that giving kids a sense of a firm foundation is also a key to helping them deal with divorce. She said it can be as simple as showing them love.

"For the littlest ones, it's important they have a dozen hugs a day," Willadsen said. "Society has taught us that children are resilient, but that's not always true."

Another Fort Smith counselor, Betsy Hedinger, said she urges parents to get involved in their children's interests. She said children will be less likely to feel overwhelmed if their parents are involved in their lives.

"As long as you are paying attention and are active in your child's life, you're probably going to do OK," she said.

Ault said that she and her husband are living by those rules to make their children's stress a thing of the past.

"I was given the responsibility, and I take it seriously," Ault said. "We always put the kids first."