Based on a True Story (names have been changed)
Eric and Jenny were married for four decades. Their marriage can be summarized in one word – bliss. The children came along and grew up in a secure family. Eric was doing well in his career. They lived a charmed life. As a couple, these are the folks that you will go to for advice on working out the kinks in your marriage. Eric and Jenny had a very congenial marriage. Disagreements were sparse. But behind this façade of a blissful marriages, the cracks were happening.
Eric is an Engineer and Jenny was a literature teacher in a Junior College. Jenny became a full time homemaker after the children came along. Yet, for Jenny, there are needs that Eric could not meet. She is more at ease and energized over discussions on words or prose. Eric is at best prosaic. The writings are on the wall but Eric was not attentive.
He noticed that Jenny has been spending more time on her WHATSAPP. And her face would brighten up when the familiar ring of a WhatsApp notification came in. She could be forgiven for having a forlorn look of a young girl falling in love. Jenny started to spend less time at home and more time outside. She joined a reading club – something to keep the intellectual part of her alive. The quarrels would flare whenever Eric asked Jenny about her activities outside the house.
Eventually, the painful truth came out when Eric saw the messages on her WhatsApp. They were painful messages. The language and the nuances that Jenny used in her communication with another man (Mr X). Mr X was intellectual and attentive to Jenny’s emotional needs. When confronted, Jenny admitted that she felt more emotionally connected to Mr. X than with Eric. She told Eric that there was a void in all the years of marriage. Eric could not meet her emotional needs. She stayed on because of the children. Now that it is an empty nest, she has to find alternatives to satisfy her needs.
Adultery is not necessary a sexual tryst although invariably, it may be the outcome. Jenny admitted that she has committed emotional adultery. She felt no remorse. Despite attempts at counselling, Jenny moved out eventually. If you are struggling with a spouse who is an emotionally adulterous relationship, you do not need to suffer along. Send us an email. We can help.