People can change for a lot of different reasons. Sometimes, a period of depression or anxiety might lead to someone changing their behavior or acting differently toward their spouse and family than they usually do. Other times, stress can be a contributing factor to someone changing their life. They might lash out unintentionally at others or even change their day around to try to better manage their stress.
However, sometimes the reason that someone starts changing their life is that they have started cheating on their spouse or intend to do so in the near future. Do you know how to identify some of the biggest red flags for potential infidelity?
You have stopped being intimate
All relationships have good times and bad times. Even the most passionate couple can go through a dry spell, which might be more indicative of someone’s stress at work than their feelings about their partner.
However, if you don’t see any signs of illness or stress but still notice a significant decline in your spouse’s interest in you, that could be a warning sign that they have someone else meeting their needs or have started looking for someone else.
Your spouse has started dressing up or working out more
People tend to try to put their best foot forward in early relationships and then become more comfortable as they know the other person better. If your spouse has suddenly started dressing in nicer clothing, hitting the gym more frequently or taking a lot of sexy selfies, they might be trying to attract the attention of someone outside of your marriage.
All of their personal devices are password protected
You’ve always been able to just open up your spouse’s phone and scroll through their picture gallery in order to text yourself images. Now you can’t get into the device at all, let alone onto their social media pages.
When they start password protecting their individual devices or automatically logging out of social media accounts when they close an app or browser, that could be a sign that they have something they want to hide.
Their work schedule has become erratic
Has your partner suddenly started putting in 12-hour days that keep them out past your children’s bedtimes when they never have had to work like that before? Are they going out of town on business trips for entire weekends without any sort of pay or compensation from their employer?
When your spouse’s schedule changes abruptly without their job or responsibilities changing, those changes could be a warning that they are attending social functions or going on dates when they claim to be at work.
If you have noticed these or other signs of infidelity or have caught your partner cheating, you may find yourself considering divorce. Before you make any major moves, you should discuss your concerns and your rights with someone familiar with how divorce proceeds in Washington.