The Divorce Attorney Journal

Affairs tank marriages every day. Some couples work through the infidelity, others cannot see past it and eventually file for divorce. Unfortunately, there are sites that encourage relationships outside of marriage, one of the largest offenders being the dating site Ashley Madison. This controversial business has released some surprising news about affairs and self-care. If divorce wasn’t in the cards for some couples before, it might very well be now.

Affairs Are Not a True Form of Self-Care

Ashley Madison has released a piece of new data that will be disturbing to some couples. They discovered that almost 80% of respondents to a recent survey (nearly 2,600 members) have considered having an affair as a form of self-care during the pandemic.

This begs a lot of questions: Have people been participating in virtual affairs or in-person affairs? Were they stepping out to meet someone else during quarantine when they should have been at home staying safe with their spouse? Were they risking the chance of contracting Covid while being intimate with someone besides their legal partner? Perhaps the people who use Ashley Madison are already risk-takers when it comes to marriage and this decision to make connections even amid Covid was a no-brainer.

A few other stats:

• In 2020, social distancing caused 6% of the site’s members to be more active. By 2022, that number had tripled to 18%.
• 4% of respondents reported that their relationship with their spouse improved in 2020 since social distancing began and 7% said it deteriorated. In 2022, 10% reported improvement and 19% reported deterioration.
• In 2020, 47% of members reported spending less time with their spouses. This number jumped up to 61% in 2022.
• 25% of site members admit to currently having a cyber affair, while only 16% admitted this in 2020.

So, let’s put this in perspective: What people admit to and what they actually do are not always the same thing. Ashley Madison may be going for transparency by reporting these tidbits, but the fact remains that the site exists so couples can date outside of their marriage, full stop. And, that, ultimately, is the opposite of what marriage is supposed to be. Enter: divorce.

Infidelity Does Matter in a Michigan Divorce

Michigan is a no-fault state, which means if you catch your spouse cheating on you and decide to file for divorce, you can’t state that you’re splitting up because of infidelity. This doesn’t matter to a court – generally speaking. If the thought of your shady ex getting off scot-free is upsetting, know that there is a silver lining.

Cheating plays a role in your divorce when it comes to certain matters like child custody, child support, parenting time, and spousal support. If you and your Michigan divorce lawyer have proof of your ex’s chronic cheating, that can help you make the case to get things like full custody of your kids or larger spousal support payments.

Infidelity matters, even if someone tries to claim it as a pandemic stress reliever.

If you’re not happy about your spouse having a “secondary partner” or participating in “married dating”? You’re not alone, and it may be time for you to learn more about filing for a Michigan divorce. Covid has tested us in enough ways – self-care is knowing if a marriage is worth saving and when to put yourself first. Contact Michigan Divorce Help in Macomb County, MI, to learn more.