About Sales Director
Jenn Price does not proclaim to be an expert on dating…but her years of practice (and willingness to share stories) will certainly get people talking. Join in the dialogue each week as Jenn tackles matters of the heart.
I recently read an article in Marie Claire called The Science of Love and Sex, which made reference to a couple of statistics that grabbed my attention.
If the woman in a marriage is a product of divorced parents, the likelihood of her divorcing increases by 59 per cent. If both the man and woman in a union have divorced parents, the odds of their marriage failing increases by a whopping 189 per cent.
(So, since my parents didn’t split until I was 23 and my dad is happily remarried, maybe that reduces my chances from 59 per cent to 49 per cent?)
According to the article, if I want a lasting marriage, I had better partner up with a guy whose parents have shown him a working model (without leaving an overly idealistic view on what it takes to make it work). I say easier said than done.
I’m often asked what kind of impact I think my parents’ divorce has had on me and my relationships. Am I jaded? Am I commitment-phobic? Do I have trust issues? There have been times where I’ve felt like I was being silently judged. True, I don’t have the benefit of seeing a working model of marriage in my immediate family, but there were many happy years. (I don’t have a rose-coloured-glasses outlook on marriage either.)
After years of independence (and time to reflect), I can see where and why things went wrong with my parents. I’ve had enough practice that (I like to think) I will do things differently.
This has been my personal journey, and I’m thankful for every moment of it. I know that the vision I have for my own marriage will come true, and it isn’t one of perfection (no one and nothing ever is). I know that I have the tools to find the right man and that our story will be our own.
We all have baggage, especially as we ‘mature’. The question is, how heavy is it? I would never judge a guy because his parents are divorced. To me, what’s most important is how he has dealt with difficult times and how he envisions his own life unfolding.
That is the most telling sign as to how our future might turn out.
Do you think your parents’ marriage impacts the fate of your own? Have you seen a difference in men that come from divorce versus those that don’t?