The Challenges of Infidelity

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According to a 2012 study, nearly one in three men and one in five women report having had extramarital sex.

Infidelity often stems from unmet needs or emotional disconnection, not love for someone new.

An affair can push couples toward honesty that deepens desire and intimacy.

Five of the most hurtful events in our intimate relationships are criticism, active disassociation, passive disassociation, infidelity, and deception. Infidelity, in particular, can create intense emotional distress, including depression, anxiety, loss of self-esteem, and trauma. Infidelity is essentially a behavior by one partner that breaks a contract that two people have with each other.

In a large study conducted by Elizabeth S. Allen and David C. Atkins in the Journal of Family Issues in 2012, they found, with large representative samples, that 34 percent of men and 19 percent of women had extramarital sex at some point, and within that sample, they acknowledged that it is probably slightly underreported and that the statistics do not include emotional affairs, which can be just as hurtful.

After an affair is disclosed to a partner, couples can experience a wave of emotional reactions from intense anger and betrayal to chaos and confusion to acceptance and grief. One of........

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