There’s no question that a lot of people find the whole winter holiday season stressful. Are the issues that holidays bring up enough to actually lead to a January divorce?
It’s well known that divorce rates tend to spike the first week of every new year, and there are some very good reasons for that phenomenon.
All that togetherness can be brutal when you’re not in sync
The winter holidays put a big emphasis on both community and family, and that can reveal some big problems with relationships. This can happen whenever:
- There are unrealistic expectations: Whether you’re hoping for a picture-perfect holiday or your spouse is the one with lofty expectations, failing to achieve your goals for the season can lead to serious disappointment.
- There are problems with extended family: If either half of a couple tends to prioritize their family over their spouse, that can leave the affected spouse feeling like a real outsider instead of welcomed and loved.
- It’s a last-ditch effort: Sometimes, people expect the holiday magic to work actual magic on their relationship with their spouse. They buy into the illusion that “everything is fine” because there is a momentary lapse in the marital strife while everybody embraces the festivities. But the trouble that’s there is just temporarily pushed to the side, not gone. When it resurfaces, it can be devastating.
- There’s too much togetherness: A lot of couples spend more time with each other than usual during the winter holidays, and that can amplify the problems they’re already having.
Ultimately, the winter holidays don’t “cause” divorce – but they can become the catalyst for one when a marriage is already fractured because they can highlight the cracks in a union. If you think you may be headed for a divorce early next year, it’s not too soon to seek more information about the process.
