Depression can sabotage a marriage as deeply as it can sabotage an individual. When one spouse is depressed, it is easy for the other to become depressed. When both the husband and the wife are depressed, it is easy to see that how one ends the marriage is itself a problem. Since depression is at the root of a struggling relationship, it is important to treat the depression. And it is important to do it first – before the sharp decision to leave or end the marriage.
Dealing with depression before throwing out a marriage seems simplistic. Logically, we know that there are ways to get depression out of a relationship other than getting rid of the depressed wife/husband. Still, relatively few seek help for depression, only about 30%. This leaves ample room for misdiagnosis of the problem and relationship collapse.
Of those seeking treatment for depression, approximately 80% show improvement with the use of medical and clinical therapy. If one or the other seeks treatment within the couple, the odds are beating the depression and restoring the marriage to significant growth.
Since women are more likely to be diagnosed with depression, perhaps due to frequent hormonal fluctuations throughout their lives, they are also more likely to discover their depression without being noticed. For a man, the very act of revealing sadness can make him feel vulnerable and depressed. As a result, people are less likely to seek help or admit their depression. Perhaps this is also why people act out their sadness more out of irritation or anger. They are also more likely to try to medicate their depression or mask it with drugs or alcohol. The depressed person is also more vulnerable to death.
When a spouse is depressed for an extended period of time, the non-depressed spouse may feel tired, overwhelmed, overwhelmed, sad, lonely, and hopeless. When a spouse is depressed emotionally and/or physically, the non-depressed partner often becomes responsible for caring for the depressed spouse as well as the kids, the home, and the job. The weight of responsibilities along with major depression can feel unbearable. A non-depressed spouse may want to live outside the marriage just to escape depression and to be able to cope better. With life.
When you have a grieving spouse, it’s best to approach your daily routine as if you were surviving. You are close to speaking. You go through a crisis in your home that changes the dynamics of your marriage and family and your workload. Connect with a support network, scale expectations for you and your spouse, and focus on self-care carefully until you can get professional help and stabilize.
When you have a grieving spouse, it is important for both parties to get professional support. A depressed spouse will need professional help to understand and overcome the illness. A non-depressed spouse will need professional help to learn how to be healthy, maintain boundaries and communicate constructively.
