Troubled Economy Saving Marriages

Expense of Divorce Creating a Stay of Execution

When they said, "for poorer," it really meant something.

In a twist of irony - considering money issues can often drive a wedge in a relationship - today's shaky economy is stabilizing marriages. For example, in South Florida's Miami-Dade County, where real estate values have dropped 20 percent, almost congruently, divorce filings from January to May of 2008 are down 18 percent from the same period in '07.

For Dr. David Olson, Amy Olson-Sigg and Dr. Peter Larson, experts in marital relationships and authors of The Couple Checkup, such hard times can present the blessing of an opportunity for those struggling in their marriage.

"Couples are often impulsive in their decision to divorce, acting too quickly when they really have plenty of love to salvage between them," says Larson. "If circumstances that simply make divorce too expensive are what it takes for couples to stay together, then so be it. That's a very worthwhile opportunity to try bonding again."

With no indication that America's current courtship with recession will end anytime soon, the trend in divorce rates may continue to drop and possibly strengthen the family unit again.

THE COUPLE CHECKUP
Just as your mother persisted that you to go to the doctor for your annual checkup, the authors of The Couple Checkup are insisting that you take the same initiative in your relationships. That's right. It's time for your checkup. I hope you've been taking care of yourself and your partner. If not, your relationship vital signs are sure to give it away. However, there's no need to worry. David Olson, Amy Olson-Sigg, and Peter J. Larson have developed a cure that will save your life (or at least your love life) in their revolutionary customized book.

The Couple Checkup is based on an unprecedented survey of 50,000 marriages nationwide. The results of these surveys have been broken down into principles that include:

* Discovering your "Couple Strengths"
* Communicating within your relationship
* Managing your finances and the accompanying emotional complexities
* Evaluating your sexual relationship, and
* Understanding roles, responsibilities, and teamwork.

However, this is not all The Couple Checkup has to offer. While it can be enjoyed on its own, the book comes with a free online individual profile as well as the SCOPE Personality Profile and the Couple and Family Map for your relationship. Each chapter of the book matches an individual category of the profile and contains couple exercises to help build your relationship strengths creating a completely customized program for you. The Couple Checkup is also customized based on the stage of your relationship- whether you are dating, cohabiting, engaged, married- your age and whether or not you have children.

The authors state, "Your road to a successful and happy relationship will be uniquely yours." So what are you waiting for? It's time to stop putting off your overdue appointment with your relationship doctor, The Couple Checkup.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:
David H. Olson, Ph.D., is Founder and President of Life Innovations, a twenty five year old company with a variety of products such as the PREPARE-ENRICH program designed to build stronger marriages. A national and international expert, Olson is Professor Emeritus at the University of Minnesota where he taught for nearly thirty years. Having written more than twenty books and one hundred articles in the marriage and family field, he has appeared on a variety of television shows including The Today Show, The Early Show, Good Morning America, and Oprah.

Amy Olson-Sigg is a Research associate at Life Innovations. Currently finishing her masters in marital and family therapy, Amy has co-authored several books including Empowering Couples and served on the Board of Directors as a student representative of the Minnesota Council on Family Relations.

Peter J. Larson, Ph.D., is Vice President of Life Innovations. He worked for several years a Clinical Director of the Smalley Relationship Counseling Center. Larson co-authored several programs including Marriage Mentor and Building Strong Families and has written numerous articles on marriage and family.