Researchers Discovered Which Months Couples Most Likely Get Divorce

If we lived in an ideal world, life would be happy and couples would not be breaking up left and right. However, it seems that relationships dissolve faster than they form, and there's a lot of collateral damage as broken hearts try to find their ways back home.

Divorce season? Most couples file to end marriage in March & August, study says https://t.co/JEoP3aSmLM pic.twitter.com/yXZRHZzZRn

— RT (@RT_com) August 22, 2016

Even marriage does not help - the high rate of divorce in the United States is enough to turn many people off vows and happy ever afters. However, it seems that when it comes to dissolving relationships, there is a seasonal pattern that couples follow. A research that analyzed all the divorces filed in the Washington state between 2001 and 2015 found that there are two months every year when divorce rates spike - March and August.

Science Alert noted that the researchers from the University of Washington said that this is the first quantitative evidence of biannual patterns for filing divorce, suggesting that the peaks could follow a "calendar ritual." Couples tend to stay together for Christmas and summer before making their decision.

Julie Brines, one of the researchers shared, "People tend to face the holidays with rising expectations, despite what disappointments they might have had in years past." She explained that during these periods, anticipation for new beginnings, change, and transition happen, like an optimism cycle. However, the stress and disappointment then lead many people to file for divorce once they had time to sort out finances and find legal representation after the festivities.

The only time when the biannual divorce spike changed was during the recession. The Daily Mail UK noted that the seasonal patterned appeared despite adding in other factors such as unemployment and the housing market. Court claims, property disputes, and other similar cases did not make the same pattern - but other court actions tied to families, like guardianship filings did, leading Brines to believe that it does take time for people to get themselves emotionally ready to take such a big step.