The divorce rate among those over 50 has skyrocketed in the past several years compared to decades ago. This is partly due to the fact that people are living longer in general, and they want to enjoy the time they have left instead of being in a toxic or loveless relationship. In addition, many couples who are unhappy may put off filing for divorce until their kids are grown. They think their children may be better equipped to handle the news later in life. However, this is not always realistic. Although younger kids may have a more difficult time understanding the reasons why mom and dad are splitting up, older children may suffer just as much emotional trauma. Questioning everything they thought to be true, older kids may have trouble accepting their parents’ divorce. 

Honesty Is the Best Policy

Telling your children that you and your spouse are getting a divorce is not going to be easy, even if you both came to the decision mutually after careful consideration. If you went to marriage counseling over the years, your kids may still be shocked at the news. Although they may have suspected you had problems, deep down they had hoped for a reconciliation and a long future together.

No couple gets married thinking that they are going to divorce. Traditionally, the top reasons marriages fail have been considered to be mishandling money, marrying too young and suffering a loss of identity; however, a recent study found that those are no longer the most common reasons for divorce. Below are the three most common reasons why modern couples choose to end their marriage, according to the study:

Lack of Love and Intimacy

No matter how passionate a relationship is at the beginning of a marriage, this passion tends to diminish over time. This is normal and happens to many couples. However, intimacy is still an important part of marriage and includes much more than just what happens in the bedroom. When couples reach the point where they experience fewer acts of affection, including holding hands, kissing or even calling or texting just to express one’s love, this may be a sign that divorce is on the horizon.

Communication Problems

Communication is extremely important in a marriage. A couple must be able to not only talk to each other about everyday life, but also the big and small problems that may crop up during their marriage. Although different styles of communication are not necessarily a sign that a couple is going to divorce, each spouse will want to understand the other’s style of communication so he or she can adequately respond to it. In addition, both spouses should understand that talking and listening are equally important.