The world of mental health is expanding. It seems as though a problem or a circumstance has to meet a kind of societal tipping point before the momentum will change and the pendulum will swing in the direction of giving it the kind of attention it deserves. Mental health is one of those issues that is seeming to get the kind of attention it has been deserving since Adam and Eve left the Garden.
Mental illness can be a problem that surfaces at different points in life for different people. It is hard to predict when someone with bipolar disorder might actually be able to identify their behavior as such. In the case of marriage, a couple who has said their vows might not have any idea what lies ahead for them if one of them is struggling with what will eventually be classified and diagnosed as bipolar disorder.
A family counselor might be called upon to help a struggling couple work through the problems that might arise because of this mental illness. It would make total sense. Bipolar disorder, in general, can take its toll on a marriage in a very catastrophic way. Things might have been going along quite well for many years when, all of a sudden, one partner embarks on a series of behavioral choices that don’t seem t make any sense at all.
Researchers estimate that about 40 to 50% of all first marriages end in divorce. About 60% of second marriages go the same way. Marriage advice, for many, could be the thing that shifts this statistic from continuing to climb to going downward. A family counselor who gets to know a couple early on and can see the changes coming when the couple themselves might not be able to can prove to be invaluable when trying to save a marriage.
And that is important. It is important because 93% of people in the United States see a healthy and happy marriage as an important life goal. Pre-marriage counseling can be an extremely informative way of getting to knowing things about your future spouse that you might never get to know otherwise, especially beforehand. Couples counseling exercises can help you learn how to live with one another and that can be a marriage saver right there.
Premarital questions that a family counselor will ask can help both you and your partner identify areas of your personalities that might class under the circumstances of living together. Men tend to show signs of mental illness at younger ages than women. Most of the time, past the age of 35, women have a higher likelihood of developing a mental illness that a man.
But, either way, whether it is the man developing a mental illness or the woman, the damage done does not have to mean the marriage is doomed. With the help of a family counselor, treatment, effort, and often the correct medication, can put a couple back on the road to a happy marriage.
