Hello,

I have posted details of my circumstances in other posts but basically, I'm awaiting a plea date for a charge relating to online sexual communications with an older child. I am currently in temporary accommodation and getting Statutory Sick Pay from my work for mental health reasons. My face and details of the case have been shared on social media, so I very rarely go outside for fear of being recognised, and also due to threats of violence against me.

I have two young children of my own and I'm allowed to have supervised contact with them. I am no risk to them at all and they ask to see me. My dilemma is, should I maintain contact with them for me to break their heart at some point when they're older, after they already have an established relationship with me? Or do I cut off contact now to protect them from the future heartbreak as they wouldn't have as strong feelings for me if I wasn't in their lives? I desperately want to maintain a relationship with them but I'm not sure if that's a selfish decision or not.

Does anyone have any lived experience of the pros and cons of maintaining/cutting off a familial relationship with their own children? I know either way they're going to find out about me and it'll affect them negatively, I just don't know which option is going to give them the best chance in life because they'll have to experience the stigma of my offences no matter what.

Thanks in advance for any and all responses.