My Marriage Was Dead After Having Kids—How We Fixed It

"I don't know if I'm built for marriage." This thought has crossed my mind more than I would like to admit. The beginning of marriage was not what I expected and was far from the emotional bliss we had when we were dating. One child came along, and postpartum depression hit; then another kid came along, and I couldn't quite recognize my body.

This is not what I envisioned in my head as a young girl desiring her own family, excited about the future. Instead, marriage stretched me in ways I never could have imagined. Without a frame of reference for what a healthy marriage looked like, it was as if I was walking through a desert, unsure of my direction. It was lonely, and I often felt defeated. The journey before me seemed long and honestly not fun. Was I in a dead marriage?

What Marriage Trends Show Us

When I got married at 28 years old, I wanted it to be for the long haul, and I'm not alone in that thinking. Experts found millennials are driving down the divorce rate by 24%. Unlike previous generations, we are delaying getting married, and once we do, we are deciding to stay married for longer.

This change is due in part to taking the time to find the right person along with having financial security higher on our priority list. At the same time, a study from the Pew Research Center found only 44% of millennials were married in 2019. That compares to 53% of Gen Xers, 61% of Boomers, and 81% of Silents "at a comparable age."

So, does this mean millennials who have taken the leap into marriage are actually happy? The short answer is not always, especially because modern societal pressures can be the root of why many couples feel dead in marriage.

Common Marriage Issues

With social media uplifting the perfect-looking couple that seemingly has everything—like money, a beautiful Pinterest-worthy home, and well-behaved kids traveling around the world—millennial couples fight with wondering if that is the goal or status to reach. That discontentment really erodes the beautiful, oftentimes simple moments that happen in everyday life with everyday couples.

Yet, it is even deeper than that. After my husband and I became marriage coaches, we learned there are many ways that death can be felt in a relationship. Here are five common issues we see in couples:

• Lack of attraction to your spouse
• Lack of emotional connection and intimacy
• Lack of passion and desire for one another
• Lack of effective and respectful communication
• Lack of financial stability

The list could go on and on, depending on the struggles each couple may experience. With a few hard shifts in perspective, we believe every troubled marriage can live again.

Ways to Revive Your Marriage

Call us hopeful, but if we could see life again in our marriage, we know others can too. Here are a few ways we know (and have seen ourselves) that marriages can live and thrive again.

Pursue your spouse like it's the first date

Truth is, we are all growing through life. We are changing and learning new things about the world around us and even about ourselves. Thinking that you know everything about your spouse at all times doesn't allow for the pursuit to happen, and we believe pursuit ignites passion.

In our book, The Eden Experience, we list 52 weeks of activities on pursuing your spouse, including making a list of questions that you would ask someone on a first date, telling your spouse to meet up at a certain location like a park or coffee shop, and simply getting to know one another again. Another idea? Write a letter to each other and go on a dinner date where you can read aloud what you both have written.

Take social media with a grain of salt

Even though our culture makes it seem like the person you get married to should know how to be a perfect spouse, that is just unrealistic. While yes, there are some basic things you should understand before marriage, don't let anyone make you feel bad if your spouse is still learning how to be a great partner.

Social media does play a role in these expectations. We typically are influenced by what we see, and we know millennials spend a lot of time on social media. The challenge we notice is making sure people view social media with the understanding that this is only a glimpse of the whole story. You never know what a couple is going through or smiling through in a photo or video.

Let yourself feel true love again

This is a vulnerable place. It is even more vulnerable if you have ever been hurt by someone close to you. Our emotions are what make us human; pain, joy, or passion are great indicators that life is being lived. The reality is, whenever you are dealing with your spouse or people in general, you are dealing with imperfection living and breathing around you. The beauty of true love is having someone embrace you despite your imperfections. Feel that but also give that.

Know that marriage will challenge and change you

When you commit your life to someone, the expectations must be clear. If you have unspoken expectations, it is important to communicate those to your spouse and allow them to be molded into something that works best for you both. Your married life should be a life you are living together, and that requires communicating truth with love and grace.

Get to know yourself

The one thing that will increase the passion in your marriage is self-awareness. We truly believe knowing yourself, how you are coming across, and what you are giving off is a starting point to real intimacy. What is the point of getting to know your spouse when you are unsure of who you are? This is key!

One fun and easy way to get to know yourself is to take the CliftonsStrengths test online. This test goes deeper than just your personality; it reveals your natural gifts. We recommend all couples take this test and share it with their spouse.

Deal with financial pressures together

Financial pressure is a common topic of discussion during coaching, and what we really want couples to focus on is working together to reach their goals instead of venting about them. We see that the core of the problem is not the finances themselves but the ability to communicate amid the pressures.

At times, it can be overwhelming, so take care of the immediate financial needs first and then make a plan as a couple to figure out what needs to happen so that everyone is working toward a common family goal. We advise couples to have a family vision plan. First, write out the vision and then identify the players on the "team" and how they can contribute to the overall goal.

Identify negative patterns in your family

Patterns can often be found in a genogram or a detailed diagram of family history that includes hereditary and behavioral patterns, as well as psychological factors over several generations. These exercises can uncover negative patterns that act as precursors of what could possibly happen in your relationship if not addressed properly.

Some negative patterns in your family are voluntary behaviors that can cause emotional pain or hardship to the family unit in the present or future tense. When you are aware of them, you can work to break them.

Go to therapy

Counseling is becoming more mainstream as the stigma around mental health issues dissipates. We tell couples to go to counseling even when nothing is "wrong." It is like getting an annual physical: Get a mental check-up to make sure you are OK individually but also as a couple. When you allow things to build up internally, they become like bricks around your heart, not allowing or giving space to that sweet spot marriage needs to thrive. This is also a great place to discuss any negative patterns found on the genogram.

Was I in a dead marriage? No. But my unhealthy perspective had to die. And I soon realized that this death was necessary to allow myself to embrace a more real, alive, healthy, long-term perspective, and together with my husband, we are still growing in this beautiful challenge we call marriage.

Bridgette Reed co-leads Marriage & Grace with her husband, Deon, and together they are on a mission to break negative patterns in marriage and relationships and increase passion and intimacy.