When individuals contemplate divorce, they often hear about the big changes it can bring. For example, parents worry about single-parenthood and living on one income instead of two.
Focusing all of one’s energy on these significant changes is natural, especially since they relate to the legal matters spouses must address in divorce. However, then it is easy for individuals to overlook the smaller changes that can have a larger impact than they might think. The day-to-day changes they experience after divorce can catch individuals by surprise.
So, what common changes should spouses expect?
Divorce can bring many expected changes, but it often has just as many unexpected ones. These smaller, day-to-day changes can include a wide range of things, such as:
- Managing finances: It is common for one spouse to take on the finances in a relationship. This can make it challenging for divorced individuals to now be the person who handles the budget, pays the bills and completes the taxes if their ex-spouse took on the majority of these responsibilities during the marriage.
- Household chores: After a divorce might be the first time individuals are living on their own for a long time. That also means they are the ones in charge of most of the chores, from washing the dishes to taking out the garbage. No longer dividing chores can be a shock – and even a stressor – for some individuals.
- Different lifestyles: Day-to-day life often feels generally different after a divorce. Relationships with friends and family can feel different. Living on one’s own and navigating being a single parent can all bring new challenges.
These changes can feel sudden, mostly because they are not the ones individuals prepare for when they divorce in North Carolina. However, divorcing spouses should keep the day-to-day changes in mind just as much as the big changes.
This is important to consider before divorce
A 2017 report from The New York Times states that the day-to-day changes are one of the most critical things spouses must consider before they plan to divorce. They must ask themselves if they are ready to handle the big and small changes alike.
Individuals should consider this question – as well as many others – very carefully as they contemplate a divorce. Doing so can help them prepare for this step and the next chapter of their lives more effectively.