January is known as Divorce Month, when the highest number of U.S. divorce filings occur. I find it ironic that Divorce Month is followed by Valentine’s Day, although with the high rate of second and third marriages and their equally high failure rates, the irony makes sense.
Sadly, it’s often women — the people feminism promised were our sisters — who are the most insensitive to divorced women’s struggles and make the cause of strengthening marriage and achieving divorce reform all that more difficult.
It’s also women who file for divorce more often, even though it’s well-established that divorce is far more of a sucker punch for women than men, with post-divorce household income for women declining by an average of 41 percent — almost double the loss men experience — plus now life’s many expenses are not shared with a spouse. That’s an enormous amount of lost income, often needed for necessities and retirement.
At least two-thirds of divorces involve low-conflict marriages, not high-conflict ones that may involve domestic violence. And although husbands are apparently more unfaithful than wives, husbands are also more likely to remain married than proceed with divorce after an affair.
Married Women Often Lack Empathy and Gratitude
Shortly after my ex left, a female friend exclaimed how fortunate I was to be in the dating pool again. Frankly, I’d have taken Mr. Boring who hooked their necklaces, lightened their to-do lists, and paid a bunch of bills. And don’t forget about that second pair of hands when you’re sick.
An abandoned woman in an
