"Wife's illness more likely to lead to divorce than husband's"

besa

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/...

From Sunday, 03/08/2015 Washington Post, page A2

"It's well-established that, with some exceptions, married people live longer and healthier lives than unmarried people. But until recently, researchers hadn't conducted a very thorough examination of how well a marriage survives when one partner becomes seriously ill...."

Momine

I thought the last paragraph brought up an interesting point. I have met many women for whom facing a serious illness was the final push to get rid of an unhappy marriage:

"She also said that people who endure serious illnesses often take stock of their lives. In surveys, women generally express more dissatisfaction with their marriages than men do, and may be motivated by serious illness to do something about the union, especially if they have children to help provide care."

exbrnxgrl

I ended my 23 year marriage well before my dx, but have not missed having a husband to go through this with me. It was not a good marriage and I think it would have been really stressful to have still been married to him and have bc. And yes, I do have adult children and their spouses who have been by my side through it all. That clearly made things much easier.

wallycat

Sad to think it speaks volumes of men and commitment. Just remembering Ed Mcmahon (carson's side kick) and how he dumped his fiancee when he discovered she had breast cancer...never mind the age difference and .....i'll stop there..

I think it was Sophia Loren that was quoted saying something to the effect that marriages basically last due to women, which I read to mean...how much crap are women willing to put up with. Sigh.

I now it doesn't speak about all men and about all women, but you do the math...........

cp418

I had seen this article too and thought no one should go through a cancer dx with this added stress. Sadly many do.....

scvmom65

Even though I do agree with some aspects of the article and I am sure it is well intentioned data, that could be scary to read if you were newly diagnosed. For myself, yes my hubby was not the best caregiver in the world when I was recovering but my dx also scared the crap out of him that he could lose me and since then he treats me and each day together as more of a gift. So I dont think it is all negative. But like others have said, I have personally seen marriages end from a bc DX too but the majority of the ones I saw ended were initiated by the woman who decided life was too short to be living like they were.