Marriage isn’t a requirement in our culture. People get married because they want to. Now of course we can debate whether or not folks are getting married for the right reasons, but whatever those reasons are, it is a personal choice. And for most of us, the decision to get married is not one taken likely. Some serious thought usually takes place before people decide to say, … [Read more...]
4 Questions to Consider Before You Quit on Your Marriage
If you’ve ever wondered what your life would be like if you didn’t marry your spouse, you’ve probably faced some tough times in your marriage. Sometimes, those rough patches are related to major issues like infidelity, but not always. Sometimes, it can just be a compilation of unresolved issues that have taken place over the years. Whatever the case, thinking about being … [Read more...]
10 Questions to Ask Yourself If Being Married is No Longer Working for You
When I decided to marry my husband, I had high expectations. They weren't unreasonable, but they were high. I still have high expectations, and I have no intentions of settling for anyone—not even the man I love with all my heart. Thankfully, I have no regrets about marrying him and what we have works for us. We are happy. But things don't always work out this way. Some of … [Read more...]
5 Things that Happen When Your Marriage Is in Trouble and What to Do About It.
It seems every few months we are flooded with headlines, announcing the next celebrity divorce or separation. Real Housewives of Atlanta stars Cynthia Bailey and Peter Thomas are the latest to reveal their marital woes. And according to reports, the couple have allegedly been living in separate homes for months now. This had us thinking. There is usually a point before … [Read more...]
3 Actions You Must Take Before Giving Up on Your Marriage
Most of the articles I write on the topic of marriage deal with cultivation, nurturing, and protection of the relationship. Indeed, especially with marriage, an ounce of prevention is worth a ton of cure. Generally, good maintenance of your relationship is going to produce a healthy relationship with long lasting results. Unfortunately, some relationships are beyond the … [Read more...]
Separated for a Season? Creative Ways to make it Through the Time Apart
Separation can be tough. When you get married, the anticipation is to be together for the rest of your life. However, life's events, such as the following can cause temporary separation and take you apart for a season: Military deployment Job re-assignments Work travel Caring for aging parents Rather than tear you apart, the temporary separation can strengthen … [Read more...]
4 Ways to Find Strength When Your Spouse has Checked Out of Your Marriage
What is a husband or wife left to do when their spouse decides to walk away from the marriage? Whether it is a broken husband or desperate wife with tears in their eyes, the questions are the same - What can I do? “He just doesn’t want to be married anymore”. “She just wants to move on with her life”. There really are no magic wands to be waved or magic words to be … [Read more...]
Can My Marriage Survive Separation?
Hi Dr. Buckingham, My husband and I have been together for 10 years and married for 5 of those years. We're now separated since January of 2014. We started having some serious issues about 2 years after we were married (2011) and it just seems that we can't get back on the right track. We're both Christians, and take our faith seriously. That's a major reason we haven't … [Read more...]
Husbands: 2 Things to Consider Before You Give Up on Your Marriage
Lately, I've been receiving a lot of question from women who have recently separated from their husbands. He either cheated or he didn’t understand what marriage required and doesn’t want to be married anymore. As a Christian husband, I feel compassion for these women, because they were dooped (I mean) led into a marriage by men who now don’t want to fight for the very thing … [Read more...]
Does Separation Lead to Divorce?
Sometimes couples cannot find resolutions to issues they have in marriage and decide to separate from each other. Many times, couples go as far as getting a legal separation which allows them to legally live apart while keeping the marriage in existence. I think a couple should try marriage counseling before someone moves out of the house. If after counseling a couple’s … [Read more...]
Living Apart From My Husband
A little over a month ago, I opened my life up to the readers and informed them that my husband and I were moving out of our townhouse together and moving back to our respective families: hubby back to his parents and me back to my grandparents. A lot of readers were very upset, insisting that we should live together no matter the circumstances. I heard everyone loud … [Read more...]
Can a Seperation Save Your Marriage From Divorce?
From the Today show comes this video where a couple says that their separation saved them from getting a divorce. Be sure to watch the entire video there is some good advice from a professional following the interview with the couple. Personally I believe that separation should be the very last of the last resorts before proceeding with a divorce. I also believe that … [Read more...]
Can a Marriage Survive a Separation?
by Tiya Cunningham-Sumter Recently hearing word that a couple I just adore was considering a separation was devastating to me. I immediately started to wonder where to place the blame. Who did not do what they were supposed to do? Who hurt who and who asked for this break first? I wanted to know where to channel my disappointment. If the marriages around me struggle, I take … [Read more...]