Posted on 11/01/2006 12:16:54 AM PST by CarrotAndStick
IOWA: Women may give up more than a husband by divorcing - they may also lose some of their good health, according to a study by Iowa State University.
The study, spanning 10 years, focussed on what happens to rural women's health after their marriage ends, compared with women who stay married, said Fred Lorenz, who co-authored the report.
"What we found was that the act of getting a divorce produced no immediate effects on (physical) health, but it did have effects on mental health," Lorenz said. "Ten years later, those effects on mental health led to effects in physical health."
The findings came from data gathered from rural Iowa women who were interviewed three times in the early 1990s, and again in 2001. All 416 women interviewed were the mothers of adolescent children when the study began. Among them, 102 women were recently divorced.
During the years immediately after divorce - from 1991 to 1994 - the divorced women reported 7 per cent higher levels of psychological distress than married women. They did not report any differences in physical illness at that time.
A decade later, however, the divorced women reported 37 per cent more physical illness, but no difference in psychological stress that could be directly linked to the divorce, said Lorenz, who co-authored the study with KAS Wickrama, Rand Conger and Glen Elder. The research was conducted out of the Institute for Social and Behavioural Research based at Iowa State.
The women in the study marked off illnesses from a list of 46 choices - ranging from the common cold and sore throat to heart conditions and cancer.
Lorenz said it appears there is a link between the higher number of physical illnesses and the different stresses associated with divorce, including financial problems, demotions, layoffs and parenting problems. He added that divorced women, especially in rural areas, have poor job opportunities and fewer support systems.
Wickrama said the women also suffer stress from having to make changes in housing, insurance, transportation and time with children.
"It looks like (divorced women) are trapped in this vicious circle of financial problems and other stressful life events ..." he said in a statement.
Lorenz said divorced women in rural areas may not have jobs that offer quality health care, and they may put off going to the doctor for preventive care because of financial constraints.
The researchers adjusted the data for age, remarriage, education, income and prior health.
By 2001, 40 of the divorced women had remarried or were living with a partner, and the study found positive influences on the women's health, Wickrama said.
"We found that divorced individuals who remarried indirectly decreased the risk of health problems because they saw beneficial influences on their financial difficulties," he said.
The study, titled "The Short-Term and Decade-Long Effects of Divorce on Women's Midlife Health," was published last summer in the Journal of Health and Social Behaviour . The research was part of an ISU study of romantic relationships and marriage in middle-aged adults that began in 1989 in an eight-county area.
Linda Waite, who co-authored the book "The Case for Marriage: Why Married People Are Happier, Healthier, and Better Off Financially," said many studies have shown that when women are divorced or widowed they see a decline in economic well-being, but the long-term effects of the stress of divorce on health is important new research.
She said it can help friends, family, and the legal and medical communities become aware "that divorce often creates a cascade of negative experiences and events for the families involved, with increased need for help, intervention and support."
Ping.
or could it be that women who are more likely to go mad are also more likely to want to divorce?
My health greatly improved.
I had no more head, neck or body pain from being hit, choked and slammed into walls and floors.
Talk about instant miracle cures.....:)
Becoming free from violence can "do a body good."
You shouldn't have been divorced, you should have been widowed. Glad you got out!
I don't believe this, for the men or women. I know my health was not as good due to the increased stress. I found out my ex was cheating, taking the kids away from me and fighting me at every step ofver simple crap. I started smoking twice as much, and excercising less. My health suffered, but it will improve, and i am no longer married to the skank.
Should have adjusted it for who initiated the divorce...and why, as well.
Some have a reduction in stress by splitting the sheets. Granted, economic worries may take precedence, but there are worse things.
They should also do a follow-up on the former husbands and see how they are doing...
LOL!
Would've been a better outcome but I *really* look awful in stripes.....:)
[actually, the last time he tried to strangle me, my dog interfered long enough for me to manage to tell him that I'd blow his head off the next time he slept. the final straw was that swing he took at my dog. he hid my bullets and left the next day.]
Do a good deed; say a prayer for his second wife.
Poor thing doesn't have a clue as to *why* he fled the east coast and ran as far west as he could.
I'll say....LOL!
The sad part is that my new hubby couldn't understand why I ducked or flinched every time he moved too suddenly.
It was sort of embarrassing for him if we were in public.....:-\
Even 14 non-violent, loving and patient years later, I still have to consciously control that "cringe" reaction.
Still have peripheral nerve damage and pain from the neck fracture, though, dang it.
I am happy that you are now free and hope divine providence will be as kind to you as it has been to me....:)
I do know now that there's no such thing as a "just one slap/I'll never do it again" promise.
I don't have an actual range but I do have 200 acres of mountain behind me and a lot of empty tin cans.
[and I learned that eveyone should have some "spare" bullets "hidden", too]...LOL!
The scars that don't show take longest to heal. Sounds like your new hubby is what you really neeeded. May God shower you both with His blessings.
I wish a pox on my ex. Smallpox, cowpox, monkeypox, it makes no difference what the [expletive deleted] catches, just so she suffers!
Thanks Joe.
[personally I think God built the new hubby especially for me. he's everything I ever wanted or needed. I believe I have been blessed]....:]
We have found a few things that help with the pain. Epsom salt baths in our jacuzzi tub. I built one in our bathroom for her personal therapy. She can soak up to the chin in it and direct the flow at her neck. We use inflatable pillows to suspend her and help direct the flow of hot water. We bought one of those comfortaire beds. She likes it, and it helped, but what really helped her was the therapeutic pillows filled with gel-beads. She sleeps comfortably because of that more than the bed. We are going to get rid of the air bed and get a heavenly bed, because we found that she sleeps better on those now.
Trial and error. Thank God she's comfortable. Prayers that you find comfort, too!
*MOUSE POX*!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.