Infidelity is among the top reasons couples divorce and social media has made cheating on a spouse more prevalent. Social media platforms such as Facebook allow spouses to communicate emotionally or sexually with others outside the marriage, which can signal the beginning of the end for many marriages.
Research points to the fact that heightened amounts of Facebook (or similar) use can lead to general marital instability and dissatisfaction. When one spouse is immersed in an online relationship 24/7, the other spouse is bound to feel like a third wheel in their own marriage.
Even though it may have started out as an innocent exchange, a spouse sharing emotional intimacy with someone online through the sharing intimate details, flirting, or the like can sometimes jump the tracks to a sexual affair if opportunity knocks.
Some research exists that social media triggers areas of the brain thought to be linked to addiction. A spouse engaged in Facebook chatting for hours on end may exhibit the same behaviors as someone battling alcohol or drug addiction including social isolation, irritability, relationship distrust, denial – all of which take a toll on a marriage.
Even those who are in seemingly good marriages are not immune to a spouse wandering into forbidden territory on social media. Extramarital affairs occur in both satisfied and dissatisfied marriages.
Sometimes a spouse is not fully cognizant where they are headed in an online relationship until the damage is done. Regardless of whether face to face infidelity transpires, the emotional, relational and mental detachment caused by strictly online betrayals can wreck a marriage.
Not surprisingly, many who file for divorce cite Facebook communication with a special somebody as supporting evidence in a spouse’s infidelity. Marriages are built on trust and many view emotional confiding and sexual conversations on social media as infidelity and of course many can lead to a full blown affair.
If you are considering divorce because of social media infidelity or other issues in your marriage, working with an skilled and compassionate attorney is important to ensure you get a favorable outcome in your divorce and to secure your rights in marital property division, spousal maintenance, and parenting time with your children. Contact Schlesinger & Strauss for help as soon as possible at 847-680-4970.
