Infidelity Kills?

It's a problem, for health.

Sep 15, 2024

∙ Paid

Cross-post from The Frontier Psychiatrists

Yes, infidelity kills, but effects are poorly researchend and different for men and women. "Infidelity, is a driver of suicide attempts. In one sample of women in Italy, a husband’s infidelity led to a 4,400% (44-fold) increased risk of suicide attempts in their female partners.3. This was a stronger predictor of attempted suicide—in this admittedly traditional society—than threats of physical assault and intimate partner violence. Kurtaş et al. (2012) observing that suicide letters written by men focused on financial problems, while for women interpersonal relationship problems with a spouse or boyfriend were more dominant -

JC Coyne aka CoyneoftheRealm

The Frontier Psychiatrists is a health-themed publication. We talk about “social determinants of health” in medicine as if they were a rounding error. In most people’s lives, “what is happening in our lives” is the “whole show.” The social determinants are the life. The health status is supporting cast.

Marriages and other long-term pair bonds are the bedrock of our lives. Monogamy is the most common assumption, although more and more individuals are discussing non-monogamous relationship models. However, no matter what relationship model one subscribes to, none of those relationship models make breaking your partner’s heart by lying to them fit in well. And yet, people cheat on each other.

This happens all the time. As a therapist, I came up with a term for this category of behavior, which I referred to as f*cked up people sh*t (FUPS). When other individuals would say, "How could he possibly do that?” But it was the kind of thing that happens all the time because people relia…

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