“The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed.” – Carl Jung

Often the cause of divorce is believed to be an event or circumstance that transpired during the marriage, whether that be financial stress, infidelity, or incongruent parenting approaches, the conversation of causation often centers around the actual marriage. We agree that these are certainly important things to explore when determining whether to seek out a divorce and if there is hope for the marriage. However, in this post, we will explore the deeper causation of divorce, which from a depth angle happens before a couple ever meets and begins in childhood.

From a depth psychology perspective, divorce can stem from various underlying causes rooted in unresolved childhood trauma, unconscious patterns and complexes, projection and shadow reflection, or individuation in one or both partners.

When it comes to unresolved issues from childhood, they also remain dormant until they manifest in adult marital relationships. If one or both partners have experienced trauma or dysfunction in their upbringing, it can impact their ability to form healthy attachments and communicate effectively in a marriage.

In our coaching work, the goal is to not only address the current real-life experiences, but also to explore the depth of your history that may have led to your decision to choose the partner that you married and how the dance of marriage played out between the two of you.