by Travers & Travers | May 25, 2020 | Divorce

When you married, you likely expected your marriage to last “until death do us part,” whether or not your wedding was a religious ceremony that included those words. Unfortunately, however, reality may not live up to your expectations.

YourDivorceQuestions.org reports that about half of all first marriages in the U.S. end in divorce or permanent separation. The second-marriage statistics are even worse. Approximately two-thirds of these marriages end in divorce or permanent separation.

Common reasons for divorce

While each marriage entails its own disagreements and difficulties, researchers list the following as the most common causes of divorce:

• Infidelity
• Addiction
• Abuse and/or excessive fighting
• Premarital cohabitation and/or pregnancy and childbearing
• Lower income
• Less education

In addition, if you and your spouse married at a young age, such as immediately upon high school graduation, this, too, constitutes a red-flag for long-term marital bliss.

Commitment

Overall, however, researchers cite lack of commitment as the number one reason for divorce. Defined as “the state or quality of being dedicated to a cause,” mutual commitment serves as the most important requirement for a successful marriage. Why? Because your marriage is the cause to which both of you must commit.

When the two of you truly commit yourselves to each other, you continually work for the betterment of your relationship and therefore your marriage. You never take each other for granted. You refuse to let the daily grind or the misunderstandings, differences of opinions, arguments, etc. inherent in any interpersonal relationship drag you down or come between you and your spouse. You put your marriage and your life together above all else.