


Many people with solid marriages choose this path to enhance their relationship. You don’t need to be in a distressed marriage to be in marital therapy. All couples can benefit from the unique education that if offered by marriage and family therapists. Pre-marital preparation and marital enrichment programs such as the Prevention and Relationship Enhancement Program (PREP) and the Relationship Enhancement Program are available in many locations. No one has a perfect marriage, and most couples can use help with their marriage from time to time. How Do You Know When to Seek Help or Suggest Doing So to a Friend? Additional causes of marital distress include substance abuse, gambling, the loss of a child, children with special needs, lack of financial resources, infidelity, infertility, loss of employment, and untreated mental illness. Research shows that the risks of marital distress and divorce are highest early in marriage and these risks increase when the couple first has children, when their children are adolescents and again, when they leave home. In some instances couples do well for a period of time and then find themselves overwhelmed by the longer-term tasks in marriage. And the couple gets locked into a negative pattern that builds walls instead of connection. Eventually, this will spill over into intimacy, and sex. Distressed couples tend to engage in these negative patterns of of communication often and are unable to successfully repair the relationship after an argument. Over time, the breakdown in communication evolves into increased arguing, stonewalling, defensiveness, and contempt. The causes of marital distress vary from couple to couple and often present as difficulties with communication. Some can make these changes on their own, but most often the successful repair of a relationship in distress is best facilitated by a trained marriage and family therapist. However, in most situations, this negative direction can be corrected and most marriages can return to a state of satisfaction. And once marriages are distressed, a progressive dyadic decline begins that easily cascades downward, ultimately leading to the demise of the relationship. Children raised in high-conflict homes tend to have more emotional difficulties. The effect on families is also profound, especially when conflict is high. And, if prolonged, it can negatively impact one's physical health. Marital distress has powerful effects on the partners, often leading to great sadness, worry, a high level of tension, anxiety, and depression. Even marriages that are seemingly going well can suffer distress if a single shattering event, such as an extramarital affair, takes place.

For some, these troubles reach the point of profound disappointment and doubts about staying married. Everyone who is married experiences difficulties. Marital distress is one of the most frequently encountered and disturbing human problems.
