Deciding to divorce and then going through the process is rarely a walk in the park, and a new Danish study shows that such a life event can have instant effects on mental and physical health. Their work, published in Frontiers in Psychology, could lead to new approaches to working with individuals going through divorce in order to avoid long-term repercussions.

The process of getting a divorce is usually a rather long one, though it can vary from one country to another. Sometimes the actual signing of a divorce is just a formality as it usually follows a long phase of separation. Danish researchers wanted to delve into the immediate effects of such decisions as many people underestimate the impact of divorcing on their general health.

"Previous studies have not investigated the effects of divorce without extensive separation periods occurring before the divorce. We were able to study divorcees who had been granted a so-called ‘immediate' divorce in Denmark and on average, these divorcees obtained a divorce within 5 days of filing for it," said Dr Gert Hald, of the University of Copenhagen in Denmark.

The Danish team surveyed 1856 people who had recently divorced. The participants filled out several questionnaires on their medical history and their divorce. The results showed that divorcing had immediate physical and emotional consequences. The researchers added that right after their divorce the subjects were in a much worse state than that of the general population.

Age and wages are key factors

However, their research highlighted key differences among those divorcing. Younger men with high salaries tended to be in better shape, while having more children, a new partner and even having already divorced in the past was associated with better mental health.

The results were very different for women. The ones who made more money, had a new partner and who had fewer divorces in the past showed better physical health. The researchers added that women felt better mentally when they initiated the divorce, which doesn't seem surprising. One aspect was common to men and women experiencing divorce: conflict. Independently of other factors, conflicts were inevitably linked to poorer mental health on both sides.  

With these results, the researchers now hope to develop "interventions," in the form of therapies in particular, to help lessen the harmful effects of divorce, and also help those divorcing save money by countering certain effects such as reduced productivity at work, sick leave, or repeated visits to health professionals.