I know this is off-topic but I just heard an interesting statistic which I thought others here (particularly those with spouses currently living with OP) might find fascinating. About 50% of people living together will break up sometime within the first year and something like close to 90% will break up within 5 years.
There is no arriving, ever. It is all a continual becoming.
That is interesting. What does it mean about the couples that last longer? I assume it makes it harder to break up, and it becomes a struggle at that point.
~Sol
~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Single Dad, and luvin it! ~ Happiness is a state of mind ~
I'd imagine the reasons why some relationships without commitment last longer than others differs quite a bit. But possible reasons might be it becomes comfortable, someone doesn't want to be alone, codependency issues, etc... Perhaps those are ones that might of made it if they had made a legal commitment to the relationship? Although there's another statistic I've heard of that people who live together and then get married have a higher divorce rate. I think society's acceptance of divorce and people living together has made it easier for people to leave situations they don't find to their liking.
Another thing, this will likely increase... the other day there was an article in the LA Times about the younger generation (I think Gen Y?)... recent college grads being the most narcissistic generation to date. Narcissisim is a trait that makes close, long-term relationships difficult to maintain.
There is no arriving, ever. It is all a continual becoming.
I read a similar statistic a while back that says that couples who live together before they get married have a much bigger percentage of a failed marriage then couples who don't live together before they are married. Something about acting like nothing has changed after the ceremony; therefore; the couple is not looking at the whole "commitment" and ceremony as important as it should be taken. It does make sense. I think back to when our pastor asked me and H if we could move apart before we got married.
Me 31 WAH 30 M 5 Together 14 years S 4 divorced 7/11/07
I think that's likely to be a far more complex issue - more along the lines that couples who don't live together before marriage are more likely to have stonger (religious) reasons for trying to make it work than secular couples
You cannot teach a man anything; you can only help him discover it in himself. Galileo Galilei
