Tuesday, June 07, 2005

"Marriage Problem; Is Your Marriage Problem Severe Enough To Warrant Getting A Divorce?" by Karl Augustine



Having a marriage problem can be agonizing especially if you're trying
to do all you can to make your
marriage work. Depending on how your
marriage was prior to thinking that
you had a marriage problem, you could
be in for a hurtful time if you don't
take a step back and look at your
marriage problem from a "helicopter"
viewpoint. To do that, you're going to
need to try to limit your emotional
stake in the situation which
admittedly is a difficult thing to do.

The first step in getting over a
marriage problem is to remember that
you aren't alone, lots of couples have
marriage problems that stem from all
kinds of different types of behavior.

Here's a partial list of marriage
problems that you may or may not be
experiencing:

Marriage problem #1: Lack of sexual
intimacy - a serious issue that you
must work through in my opinion if
your going to work it out.

Marriage problem #2: Exploding during
an argument, getting too emotional and
letting your temper get the best of
you - you need to learn to work
together and you can't do that if one
of you is getting too heated.

Marriage problem #3: Being selfish -
eventually this will catch up to you.
You should always think of your
partner when you think of yourself.

Marriage problem #4: Being dishonest -
another serious issue. If you cannot
be 100% honest and open with your
mate, you're marriage is most likely
doomed or at the very least unhappy.

Marriage problem #5: Teasing too much-
generally the husband does this but it
could go either way. If there's a
little bit of truth to the teasing or
there's a greater marriage problem
that incites the teasing, you could be
in for a long road to recovery
together. Chances are that you'll have
a lot more work to do to correct this
marriage problem.

Marriage problem #6: Not respecting
your spouse - this marriage problem
can result in all types of other
problems. If you are experiencing this
you must get to the root of this and
figure out why the disrespect is
present. If you aren't getting the
every day respect that you deserve,
make it a priority to not let this go
on another day.

Marriage problem #7: Not being
attentive to your spouse or not
listening to your spouse - men are
usually guilty of this marriage
problem but is isn't exclusive to the
weaker gender by any means. Really
listening doesn't mean obeying, it
means understanding what's important
to your spouse and acting accordingly.

Obviously there are many other things that could be labeled a "marriage
problem", you have to decide what
those are as they pertain to your
situation.

So, how do you figure out if a
marriage problem or problems are
severe enough to warrant a divorce?

You should first examine what your
marriage problem actually is and
decide if it is exclusively a problem
for you or if it is something that you
both consider to be a marriage
problem. If you are the only one who
sees the said action as a marriage
problem, you have to decide whether or
not that specific marriage problem is
being caused by you or whether it is
truly a problem brought on by your
spouse. If the marriage problem is
unique to you, seek some help from a
counselor and do yourself the courtesy
of trying to correct the problem
before you believe that you need to
run right out and get a divorce.

You'll be a better person for it
because you will have fixed something
within yourself.

However, if you truly believe that the
marriage problem is caused and
prolonged by your spouse, sit down
with yourself first and examine what
you believe to be the root cause of
the behavior that creates the marriage
problem. Make sure that you are being
logical when you identify the behavior
that you feel is causing the marriage
problem and try to recall if the
traits or behavior that you've
identified in your spouse
are 'fixable' in your mind...assuming
of course, that your spouse will agree
that you are right.

Next, approach your spouse with the
information that you've reflected on
and try to talk through the cause of
the marriage problem. Hopefully your
spouse will be open to constructive
discussion regarding the marriage
problem so you can work through it
together. If you cannot do work on the
marriage problem together, seek the
help of a mediator or marriage
counselor so you can actually talk out
the marriage problem logically. If you
cannot work it out after counseling,
deep self-reflection and discussions,
you should be able to decide whether
or not the marriage problem warrants a
divorce or not.

Of course, no one can decide this but
you.

Karl Augustine
http://www.deciding-on-divorce.com/marriage-problem.htm


About the Author
Author of "A Practical Guide To
Deciding Whether Or Not To Get A
Divorce", the eBook recommended by
counselors to thier clients.
Proven "Actions Items" to help you decide!
marriage problem

"Sexless Marriage : Does Your Sexless Marriage Have You Thinking About Divorce?" by Karl Augustine



If you are in a sexless marriage and are unhappy because of it, don't worry, it isn't unrecoverable but it is serious cause for concern. You may even be thinking that you need a divorce because of your sexless marriage, that's only natural. But, in order to really decide what to do, some thinking needs to be done so you feel good about your decision, regardless if you stay married or not.

Being stuck in a sexless marriage can have you feeling a wide range of feelings from loneliness, listlessness, confusion, unconfident, etc. These feelings come about for a variety of reasons and they can be overcome if you just figure out why you're in a sexless marriage. You need to get to the root of the problem and uncover the real reasons that you and your spouse are no longer sexually active assuming of course, you once were!

To get to the heart of the causes for a sexless marriage will take some time. On the surface, you may be thinking that the cause of your sexless marriage may include one or more of the following scenarios:

Sexless Marriage: "We both work too much!":

You both work extremely hard and there just never seems to be enough time to get together, your schedules are skewed. This is true a lot nowadays with the 'new' economy, lots of couples are married but just live together like roommates if both parties have 'time-consuming' careers. If not managed properly, it is unfortunate but common for people in this type of lifestyle to end up in a sexless marriage.

Sexless Marriage: "You work, I stay home with the kid/s!":

One of you works very hard with your career and one of you stays home to raise the children (child), which is equally as hard as any career! This situation can lead to a sexless marriage in many cases because of the seemingly disparate priority base of each party. The spouse with the career may need to work after hours, travel, or attend "post work" functions and the spouse who stays home raising the children (child) may not have any other outlet for relaxation away from the home front. This situation can easily lead to a sexless marriage because there may be underlying feelings from both sides that contribute to an already tough situation based on personal and work related schedules.

The spouse with the career may say at times, "Why do you think I work so hard? I do it for you, the kids, our family, etc.". The spouse who stays home with the children (child) may say at times, "You have another release, you have social interaction daily with the outside world. I feel stuck here sometimes, I need to get out and have time for myself.". If the spouse that stays home feels like the spouse with the career enjoys being out and working more than being home, that calls for a whole different and escalated level of concern! Chances are the sexless marriage was bound to be that way before the current situation even arose.

Sexless Marriage: "I don't know why...there's just no spark left, you don't pay enough attention to me and our sex life and I guess I don't either!":

This is a common sexless marriage situation and it can be caused by a variety of things including emotional scars, bad experiences, boredom, laziness, etc. In this situation, there is deep cause for concern from both parties because both parties aren't happy sexually but don't really know why it ended up this way. Both parties have just "let things go" and didn't place a high enough priority on their sex life with their spouse, which in and of itself is very concerning.

Why would either or both parties let things get this way when love making is so important?

Sometimes there's a feeling of being taken for granted that can occur in this type of sexless marriage, and both parties should realize that sex is a basic human need and should take priority over other things at the right time. It takes work to get out of this type of sexless marriage, you need to sit down and figure out why your marital love life has dwindled. If you both really want to rekindle things, you can do so, but you both need to take equal responsibility for correcting the problem.

Whatever type of sexless marriage you are in (there's certainly more types than listed here), remember that it is not unrecoverable. If you're to the point of thinking about getting a divorce because of your sexless marriage, take the time to sit down and figure out how it got to be the way it is now.

If you've lost interest in your spouse from a sexual point of view, you need to define exactly why that occurred. If you don't know right off hand, you need to think back to a time when you did 'have the spark' and recall what you both were doing, feeling, thinking, etc. From that point, identify what has changed, why it has changed, and what you can do about it. When you get that portion figured out, you may well on your way to taking the first step of recovering from your sexless marriage. Remember, if you really want to rekindle your relationship, you can.
About the Author
Karl Augustine
"A Practical Guide To Deciding Whether Or Not To Get A Divorce"
deciding on divorce
sexless marriage