Here’s a list of 10 symptoms that your marriage could be deteriorating to be on the lookout for …
- You’re constantly hearing: “I love you … but … I am not in love with you.”
- One of you wants to go for marriage counseling but the other won’t participate.
- You feel like you’re in a convenient business or roommate partnership rather than in a passionate marriage. Your relationship has deteriorated to a delegation of tasks and responsibilities.
- You, and / or your spouse, avoid dealing with your marriage problems by over indulging in food, drink, exercise, work, etc.
- You rarely spend quality time alone together; you find reasons to be away from each other.
- You’re not communicating face to face; you use texts, notes, e-mails or your children to relay important information.
- You’re sleeping in separate rooms or going to bed at different times.
- One, or both, of you are avoiding physical intimacy with each other.
- You fantasize about what it would be like to be single again or in a new relationship with somebody else.
- You suspect, or have discovered, that your spouse is having an emotional or physical affair.
These are all indicators of a marriage that is dying of neglect. They scream that a couple has stopped trying.
Most marriages don’t end because of one cataclysmic event. They’re like the once majestic oak tree … that looks strong and healthy but has really been rotting away for years from the inside out … until a storm blows in and topples it … exposing the decay that led to its demise.
How can you stop this deterioration from happening in your marriage?
By not allowing it to happen to you … it is easier for you to change your outlook than to change your spouse … figuratively and literally.
We want to blame our spouses for where we are in our marriages. But the truth is you need to own your personal responsibility for making your marriage better.
So which one of these symptoms do you want to attack first?
Your marriage will only be as strong as its weakest spouse … so work to be the best spouse you can be!