Some married couples can pinpoint the exact moment their marriage ended.
Instead of an ongoing conflict, it is sometimes one instance that changes everything and spells the end of the relationship.
According to Wilkinson & Finkbeiner, LLP, almost 50 percent of all marriages in the United States will end in divorce or separation.
Buzzfeed asked members of their community who have gone through a divorce to share the moment they knew their marriage had come to an end.
The popular media site racked in 55 responses from real-life people – but FEMAIL has picked out the most shocking.
‘I will never forget. I should have known it was over, but I didn’t. I got into a car accident — flipped the car seven times and slid upside-down in the car on the pavement for 20 feet,’ someone wrote.
‘Emergency personnel had to use the jaws of life to get me out of the vehicle. The first thing he said to me when he got to the hospital was: «How is my car?»‘
Another shared: ‘We had been unhappy for several years, but I knew it was irreparable when I broke my ankle on my job, and his primary concern was making an extra trip downtown to pick up my car. He complained so much about it that I told him to just drop me off at the car, and I would drive home… with my freshly broken ankle.’
Some married couples can pinpoint the exact moment their marriage ended (stock image)
‘No matter how bad things were between us, I would never have treated him so callously if he was hurt. I realized then that he didn’t care about my happiness or well-being. I was just a possession, like the sofa.
‘I left eight months later, in January 2020. I got a couple of cats, bought my own place, and reunited with my high school boyfriend. Life is good.’
A third divorcee candidly shared: ‘Even before we were married, in our early 20s, things had been rocky between my (ex) wife and me. Essentially, she wasn’t into the marriage, and I had forgiven a few transgressions on her part.
‘I thought we had worked things out and were on track. But, at a Christmas party for her work, we were at a table with a few other couples who had been married for some time.
‘We were the young «newlyweds.» Someone asked if we were planning to start a family, and I said, «Yeah, hopefully soon.» She said (in front of everyone), «A family? We don’t even know if we’re going to stay together!» It grew really quiet, and the other couples could see I was caught off guard. THAT is when I knew. There was no going back, and getting divorced was the BEST thing to happen to me.’
And there were similar warning signs for other couples too as someone else revealed: ‘I knew my marriage was over the day I decided to cheat.’
They continued: ‘I had never cheated on anyone, and I knew at that moment that I couldn’t turn back, and I couldn’t face my husband with that guilt. That cheating turned into a two-year affair before we finally divorced, but he never did know.’
In a separate incident, another wrote: ‘My ex-husband left me alone in the delivery room because it was «taking too long» and he was bored. He went to the gym and then watched a basketball game. Came back just before the baby was born.’
Instead of an ongoing conflict, it is sometimes one instance that changes everything and spells the end of the relationship (stock image)
One ex-wife said simply she knew ‘when he thought the week after my mom died was an appropriate time for a week-long, solo vacation.’
Someone else wrote: ‘There were hundreds of reasons I knew my marriage was over, but the final straw was in 2019 when my grandma was given only a few days to live. I said I wanted to see her one last time, and his response was, «So, you’re gonna go see her, come back, then go back for the funeral? No, you can wait until she dies.’
‘Two days later, when she did die, I fell to the floor crying. I told him my grandma just passed, and he said, «Okay, well, you knew it was gonna happen,» patted my back, and went back to playing video games. I started researching divorce attorneys that day.’
‘I found his collection of panties he’d stolen from his conquests, including mine from when we were together the first time. Some were labeled from after we were married,’ a woman revealed.
Another shared an experience that involved who they thought were their best friends.
‘After 20 years of marriage, my ex and I were at a concert with a couple we considered best friends. They were both in our wedding, as we met at their wedding. We vacationed with each other’s families. Well, my buddy got too intoxicated at the show and started having a hard time. He kept asking if everything was okay. I did my best to reassure him that all was well with the world,’ they wrote.
‘Eventually, he said, «So I screwed Sarah, and everything is good?» Turns out my wife and my best friend (her best friend’s husband) had a two-year affair smack-dab in the middle of our 20-year marriages.’
Another former spouse shockingly revealed she knew when, ‘He tried to move his girlfriend into our home. He couldn’t understand why I objected! Our kids were four and seven.’
‘I didn’t know it was over until I came home from work to find he had packed up all his belongings and left for his parents’ house. He didn’t even leave a note or tell me he had filed for divorce until the next morning when he sent me a text. I obviously knew we had problems and was looking for a counselor for us, but I hadn’t been able to schedule anything yet,’ a story read.
‘It was a slap in the face, considering I had been completely supporting him for the last six months since he out-processed from the military and hadn’t found a job. He also did all of this five days before Christmas.’
One story read: ‘When he was messaging other women while I was going through a miscarriage.’
While another said, ‘I knew when my husband went away for a conference/training, and I found out the night before that the other woman (his secretary) was also going. I decided I’d call to check in the second night, and I couldn’t get him to answer his cell or room phone.
‘He responded that his phone died and was charging in the bathroom while on vibrate, and the room phone wasn’t working because he never heard it ring. I’m not that foolish. He came home, and we separated days later.’
