Summer Break Could Lead To Divorce, Study Says

A new study suggests that school summer breaks place more strain on parents’ marriages than anything else in the year according to the Daily Telegraph.

Summer break is a time of the year that kids quite literally dream about. After a long academic year of studies, once summer break comes around its time to break loose and go wild!

The Daily Telegraph stated that as many as a fifth of parents find their relationship under strain in some way by the end of the long school break according to a study by the British law firm Stowe Family Law.

The report suggests that the pressure of balancing work and childcare over the course of the break, as well as the resulting financial stresses, could be partly to blame.

Divorce lawyers say that family holidays, such as summer break, are times when couples spend more time in each others company than at any other period of the year, which could help drive them to the brink of divorce.

Nearly 20 percent of parents admit that summer break puts a strain on their marriages, and lawyers confirm a spike in divorce inquiries during early autumn, immediately following those long, hot months of chasing after the kids, juggling work and family schedules, and trying to amass enough funds to actually go somewhere on vacation according to MSN Now.

The study also showed that 18 percent of parents had reassessed their relationship – in some cases including considering divorce or separation – at the end of a summer holiday period.

Marilyn Stowe, senior partner at the firm, said: “School holidays are a time when busy parents take time off to spend with their families.

“Our experience, based on the clients we see at our offices across the country, is that parents may give their marriages ‘one final go’ over the holidays, or delay any proceedings until the children are back at school because they don’t wish to spoil the family’s break.

“The grass isn’t always greener on the other side. I suspect that a relationship in trouble may be too damaged to be rescued by a holiday – but can easily be broken by it.”

Many parents will say the same thing, summer holiday, and any long holiday for that matter, will cause a strain on the relationship. But has it ever had you considering a divorce? Leave your thoughts in the comments.

[photo credit: KellyELambertPhotography via photopin cc]