About 41% of first marriages in the U.S. end in divorce, based on data estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau and the American Psychological Association. And with hundreds of thousands of individuals and families experiencing divorce each year, understanding its emotional effects has become an important part of dealing with the transition and supporting long-term well-being.
Divorce can be emotionally challenging. And many people recover over time with support from family, friends, counselors, or mental health professionals. But what type of an impact can divorce have on your mental health?
It’s crucial to seek early help to make an easier transition to cope and build a healthy path forward.
The Depression and Anxiety Connection
Research into divorce and mental health is extensive and also often consistent. According to a 2020 study in the Journal of Mental Health, people who have recently divorced report noticeably higher anxiety and depression than the general public.
In a review from Oklahoma State University Extension researchers, they mentioned that divorced individuals show depression rates that are about two to nine times higher than those who are married.
Also, a study from 2003 revealed that recent divorcees have a markedly increased chance of their first psychiatric hospitalization for depression, independent of their age and gender. These are not just little “mood swings” for many.
Many people going through divorce experience mental health issues that reach clinical significance.
Why Divorce Hits So Hard: What Is Actually Being Lost
The psychological consequences of divorce involve much more than simply having the marriage terminate. Many important support systems crumble away, including routine actions, social self-concept, future vision, financial stability, and even the chief source of company on a daily basis.
When all those parts disappear together, the mind responds with something that looks much more like grief than normal disappointment.
Divorce can keep stress running. It may even get worse as the legal steps go on. While the whole thing drags on for a stretched period of time, the chronic strain will tend to mess with sleep. Even still, it weakens the immune function, strains the heart and blood vessels, and makes emotion regulation harder.
Janice Kiecolt-Glaser’s study, published in American Psychologist in 2018, revealed that disruptions in marriage weaken immune responses and directly connect psychological stress to health problems.
The legal proceedings can affect an individual’s finances and even schedules. For divorce proceedings, parents need to adjust to their children’s routine and even have their social life shaken up. These are multiple stressors that convulge all at once.
Factors That Shape Whether Mental Health Effects Are Short-Term or Long-Lasting
Research shows that the person who started the divorce often ends up with better short-term mental health results than the other person, the one who didn’t. In a 2011 study looking at 1,786 men and 2,068 women, the non-initiators had worse mental health outcomes in the immediate stretch right after separation.
Feeling in control and ready when beginning an activity seems to shape the way psychological adjustment occurs. Research on this question is more mixed than it might seem. In some studies, it says that people in unhappy marriages who divorce don’t end up meaningfully better off than those who stay. With other factors controlled for, a counterintuitive finding has shaped much of the later research in this area.
Walking away from a tough or possibly harmful marriage can be a harsh experience for some. It has the potential to foster better psychological well-being over time.
The effect of divorce on people is intertwined with honest assessments of its impact on their mental health. The legal elements of the process play a crucial role as well. Dallas family lawyer Kala Arevalo looks at the real-world scope of divorce proceedings, typically including custody, support, property division, and enforcement.
Several factors play a role in how long the case will persist. It also shows how much chaos it causes during its course.
There are two elements that are most associated with better mental health after divorce. These are having reliable social connections and a consistent financial footing. Those who can lean on dependable ties, maybe family, friends, or even professional services usually recover more effectively.
The financial problems that people may face during the time of a divorce can cause added stress. The stress of a prolonged lawsuit, growing conflict, and rising costs is likely to affect the mental health of all the parties involved, largely because there is no end to their stress until the case ends.
Mental Health Consequences Backed by Research
Peer-reviewed work that lays out what happens after a divorce points to higher chances of major depressive disorder, and in several studies, divorced people end up with clinical depression at rates 23% or more higher than those who remain married without a break.
Anxiety disorders also show up more often, with some research suggesting that nearly 40% of adults who have recently divorced deal with anxiety. Research from the MRC National Survey of Health and Development indicates that divorce or separation is linked to a greater likelihood of alcohol and substance consumption, regardless of socioeconomic factors and their original health status.
Disturbed sleep shows up repeatedly, along with physical health decline, including cardiovascular consequences tied to persistent stress. Social isolation gets mentioned a lot too, often linked to losing the shared network of friends that had been built around the couple rather than any one person.
When Staying Married Is the Greater Mental Health Risk
However, most of the literature available regarding divorce and mental health focuses on the negative impact associated with such separation, and this pattern is quite common in literature.
In addition, other research offers another perspective that researchers have not given much attention. When a person is trapped in a very unhappy and stressful marriage, the cost of staying may outweigh the cost of leaving.
According to researcher Dr. Paul Amato, people who remain in unhappy marriages do not experience the usual benefits that marriage can provide. Even when they remain, there is still this heavy emotional load, because they often do not have the psychological cushioning that the better unions tend to supply.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health’s depression resource, recognizing depressive symptoms and knowing when to get professional assistance is crucial, and this advice is just as relevant throughout the marriage as it is afterward.
What the Research Recommends
Research suggests that maintaining social support and the needed professional help can protect one’s mental health during and after the divorce. This advice includes other routines and practicing low-conflict co-parenting.
Those who experience symptoms beyond the initial adaptation phase, constant sadness, performance problems in their work environments, relationship difficulties, or even indicators related to dependence on alcohol and drugs should seek clinical mental health assistance instead of considering it some form of last resort.
The SAMHSA treatment facility locator provides individuals with information about mental health and substance abuse services throughout the United States, and people can contact the SAMHSA National Helpline by calling 1-800-662-4357 twenty-four hours a day.