Divorce later in life has seen a steady rise over the years and has even been dubbed, grey divorce.
Gemma Nice, an award-winning Sex and Relationship coach and multiple award winner including Most Empowering Sex & Relationship Coach 2024 and Most Empowering Nationwide Sex & Relationship coach, spoke exclusively with Express to discuss this phenomenon.
According to research from the Journals of Gerontology in 2022, more than one third of couples divorcing in the United States are older than 50.
A stark rise from previous years when only one out of every ten couples over the age of 50 were divorcing.
Numerous other studies have found that aging couples have a higher likelihood of dissatisfaction in their marriage, ultimately leading to divorce.
When asked who were more likely to ask for a divorce among the aging couples, Nice explained roughly 62 per cent of women were the ones making the bold move.
“Women want to work on the relationship but there is only so much they can take before they have to move on due to indifferences”, explains Nice.
According to Nice, the main factors for later in life divorces include couples being on different life paths and a lack of understanding.”
Empty nest syndrome is a feeling of grief when the children move out of their childhood homes and also greatly affects the couples left behind.
“Another reason is because if they had children young, the children may have moved out and it’s just the two in the relationship,” said Nice.
“They don’t know how to function as a couple anymore and then the arguments start, or the resentment starts because the communication is out of sync.”
Pensions and life savings are another key factor for the high divorce rates as Nice explains ‘there may be resentment if one is earning more than the other’.
Sex, or a lack thereof, is another key factor as Nice adds “I see a lot in my coaching that there is a lot of infidelity because mainly the female is going through menopause and their libido is lower, meaning less intimacy”.
“The male partner still wants to be intimate but there is no love or lust there anymore and so goes elsewhere”.
Getting older will also inevitably mean more health challenges which could negatively impact a couple’s marriage as a serious health condition can put a lot of strain on the relationship.
Opting out of the marriage, however, may not always be a better option with financial strains and mental health issues likely, according to Nice.
“The stresses of divorce later on in life can lead to mental health issues, which can lead to health problems and then in turn a loss of financial earnings due to this,” said Nice.
She added: “Both parties may be affected by the separation of friends where some friends may start to choose sides. This can have an impact again on mental health.”