Relationship Counselor | 5 Steps to Divorce Proof Your Marriage Before it Starts

1. Living apart Before You Marry-A British government study found that couples who lived together before marriage are at least 40 percent more likely to divorce within 15 years of their weddings, and 60 percent more likely to divorce or separate at some point. Similar studies in Canada, Sweden & the U.S. also had similar findings.
2. No Sexual Experience before Marriage-Several Studies (including the Redbook survey) show that women who engage in early sexual activity and those who have had multiple partners are less apt to express satisfaction with their sex lives than women who entered marriage with little or no sexual baggage. According to the CDC, 80% of women report they regret their first pre-marital sexual encounter and a high percentage report 20 years later when having sex they visualize the first person they had sex with and note it’s “anti-climactic.”
3. Marital Commitment-Sex therapist Mary Ann Mayo says this connection is particularly strong for women, since “their sexual responsiveness is greatly affected by the relational context in which lovemaking takes place.” Mayo says that a mutual commitment to lifelong marriage not only makes it easier for women to “let themselves go” sexually, but it also tends to encourage constructive “pillow talk” about sex between spouses.
4. Attend Church Together-University of Chicago study: “Sex in America: The Definitive Survey,” found that monogamous conservative Christians reported the most physical satisfaction from sex. Several other studies show that married couples who attend church at least once per week are the most sexually contented segment of society. While sexual fulfillment certainly contributes to marital satisfaction, Mayo says that sexual enjoyment is more commonly a byproduct of a stable, happy union rather than the primary cause of it. Often those who go to church have more access to marriage seminars and couples weekends are a more likely to receive pre-marital counseling. A research review by psychologist Timothy Kelly found that the frequency of church attendance positively affected sexual satisfaction above and beyond one’s commitment to traditional sexual morality. Similarly, the Janus Report on Sexual Behavior found the nonreligious “have a tendency to focus on the more technical or physical performance aspects of sex, the religious pay more attention to the mystical and symbolic dimensions of one’s sexuality.”
5. Lack of Sexual Anxiety-A UCLA study found that sexual satisfaction is positively affected by “the absence of sexual anxiety.” Monogamous spouses do not have the issues of guilt from violating sexual values, and they do not have the fears of STD’s or AIDS.

Related Research: The Long & Short Term Effects on Men and Women on Hooking Up or Casual Sex & How to Have the Best Sex.

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