An average of 10 years shorter for men and 6 years shorter for women. Especially in children whose parents divorced while they were teens. Parental divorce is one of the strongest predictors of suicide, now the second leading cause of death among teens. The children from divorced homes rank a close second. Children who experience the death of a parent do not appear to suffer as adverse consequences as those whose families are torn apart by divorce.
Research provides that divorce has potentially deadly side effects.
If your own marriage has fallen apart or your parents divorced when you were a child, deal with that as a physician both emotionally and physically. Your ability to help others work through divorce is contingent upon how well you resolve similar issues for yourself. If you re currently married, take some time to get away and invest in your relationship and learn to communicate. Don t allow your marriage to drift because of the demands of your practice. Research shows that couples instructed in how to communicate, solve problems and clarify expectations cut divorce rates 5 times compared to control groups of couples that receive no training before marriage.