When the friction heats up in marriages, more people (10-20%) than ever before are considering getting professional help. That is very wise. We may be making progress. I am still disturbed that most do not seek help. What is wrong with the other 80%? Getting therapy seems so reasonable to me; it seems that every friend, every parent, every child, every relative, and every professional person in contact with the unhappy couple should recommend counseling. Why don't they? Divorce is such an emotionally laden decision (perhaps more so than who to marry), we need help seeing the situation realistically, trying to resolve the problems, deciding what other alternatives exist, considering the consequences to others, making reasonable plans for our future, etc. Anyone going though marital hell or a divorce needs a friend to talk to and vent with, no doubt, but he/she needs much more than that--a wise, experienced, unemotional but empathic and caring counselor and a group of people who can relate.
Marriage Equality
Marriage
Marriage DayWe are freer than we have been for centuries to dissolve an unhappy marriage. There are other factors associated with the increasing divorce rate. Many of these social-economic factors would be considered good, e.g. more equal education and job opportunities for women, higher incomes, fewer children, fewer religious restrictions, and general social acceptance of divorce and of women living alone. Yet, as we will see, there are terrible consequences frequently associated with divorce (and with continuing a bad marriage). Over 75% of Americans accept divorce as a solution when a couple can't get along, even if they have children. There is concern by some that divorce may have become too easy (few people who have personally gone through a divorce consider it easy). But, what about those who are happily married and newly weds? Why not help...