The thing that stands out to me as I read books on marriage, talk with a therapist, and reflect on visits with couples counselors, is how the idea of a "walkaway wife" (as MWD calls it) surfaces as a theme. To me, there is the continuous recognition a woman can ruminate, suffer in silence, and complain but, like the tip of an iceberg above the water, chooses not to escalate the issue (either via honest, caring conversations with a partner or calling sooner for counseling, and instead decides "well, I did my best and the best solution now is to walk away". I'm over-simplifying so that this isn't a super long message. I'm also not talking about situations involving abuse, drugs, mental and physical health issues, etc. that are in a class all their own. I understand at this point a woman has expended a great deal of individual energy in PRIVATE. As we can see from this forum, there are plenty of husbands, wives, and other partners, who will do everything possible to save a relationship. So, why suffer alone until it is too late? I get that it is hard, scary, uncomfortable, etc., and that people can't always clearly see that D is often not an effective solution. But, phew, being the "left behind" partner is frustrating.
