Marriage Trouble

I see you over there, sitting in the audience filled with families—moms and dads, grandparents and children. I see you juggling your toddler, holding your baby, and trying with all of your might to get a good video of your kindergartener on stage in his first-ever school play. I see you there. Alone. I see you at t-ball games and ballet drop-off, every time, just you. I see you making dinner in shifts, keeping a plate warm with tin foil as you eat with the kids, because you know he’ll be hungry when he comes home. I see you doing bath time, story time, breakfast, and middle of the night feedings by yourself. All alone. I see you feeling so lonely you

Many marriages around the world are groaning under quarantine stress. We are collectively spending more time with our spouses than many of us have in a very long time (if ever before)—some in extremely tight quarters. Personal space has completely evaporated. Sex and intimacy look different. We’re cooking several meals a day for the whole family, cleaning up more messes, balancing work with homeschooling, all the while trying to internally remind ourselves not to touch our faces—which just in itself requires a fair amount of mental energy. Problems and issues that may have been tabled pre-lockdown are now blaring and have nowhere to hide. Tensions are heightened. Every little thing from reactions, moods, expectations, responses, and emotions are all magnified. Some of