Hooray For Hollywood

By Jennifer Graham Opponents of divorce had a surprising new ally this summer:  Hollywood. Normally the champion of the follow-your-bliss world view, filmmakers suddenly rushed to the side of intact families, not unlike a caped superhero venturing forth to save the world. First on the scene:  uber family man Brad Pitt, whose character in World War Z quit a […]

Does Getting Divorced Mean We Lied On Our Wedding Day?

By David Schel As baseball season nears the home stretch, football is gearing up.  Sports, like entertainment in general, provides needed distractions from life’s difficulties.  It also mirrors what goes on in our relationships and, in particular, marriage. I say this as I’m going through my annual ritual of mustering up the energy to face another […]

The New “F” Word

By Greg Griffin New York Yankee catcher Yogi Berra once famously said, “It ain’t over ‘til it’s over.” Anyone who has been through a divorce knows that’s not true when it comes to divorce. It’s never over even after it’s over, no matter how much we might want it to be over, especially if you have […]

Facilitating Forever

By Alan J. Hawkins, Ph.D Recently our attention has been riveted on the important debate about who can legally marry. Even with the recent Supreme Court rulings, the debate and legal struggles will continue for some time. As important as the debate over same-sex marriage is, however, I hope it won’t overwhelm an even more […]

Standing For Something

By Kenda-Ruth Stumpf In 2005, my husband left me for another woman and filed for divorce.  Everyone kept telling me I was so lucky that at least we didn’t have kids. Though I agreed that divorce wouldn’t be good for children, being childless did not make me feel lucky.  For me the possibility of divorce […]

CHANGING THE WAY WE DIVORCE

Written by Chris Gersten and Beverly Willett For more than 40 years, Americans have by and large ignored the devastating consequences of no-fault divorce on our nation’s families. All that is about to change. In 2011 we launched the Coalition for Divorce Reform (CDR), a non-partisan coalition of divorce reform leaders, marriage educators, domestic violence […]

A Proposal To Restore Marriage In Louisiana

By Mike McManus The following is an abbreviated version of my testimony of February 5, 2013 to the Louisiana Marriage Commission. No Fault Divorce Reform I suggest that Louisiana consider two different No Fault Divorce Reform strategies. The first is based on the fact that lengthening the time before a couple can get divorced will […]

Finding Meaning in Your Life and Marriage

By Lori D. Lowe What’s more important to you—total personal freedom and the pursuit of happiness, or finding a purpose and meaning for your life? Researchers have a lot to say about how choosing one or the other may impact how satisfied you will be in your life. And rather than working together, these ideals […]

The ABCs of Marriage and Relationship Education

Written by Seth Eisenberg Nearly 30 years ago Virginia Satir, called the “Mother of Family Therapy,” encouraged psychotherapists to shift focus from therapy to education as their primary strategy for helping repair relationships. Fifteen years later, Dr. Marty Sullivan of Duke University’s renowned Integrative Medicine Program began integrating relationship skills training into a holistic approach […]

A Not-So-Rosy Valentine’s Day

Written by Michele Weiner-Davis Mention Valentine’s Day, and it’s bound to conjure up the same mental image for nearly everyone: Romantic dinners at candlelit restaurants, Godiva chocolates, two dozen long-stem roses, sentimental Hallmark cards. But what if your relationship is on the rocks and Valentine’s Day is just another painful reminder that your life isn’t […]