Most people who have ever gone through it would likely agree that their divorce was the most difficult time of their lives. Whether both spouses agree it is for the best or the decision is primarily one sided, the emotions of going through a divorce are just brutal. Once the decision is made that the marriage is "irretrievably broken", does the process have to be so difficult? We sat down with Karen Lungarelli to talk about the process and what can be done, if anything, to make the process less difficult. Her advice, "focus on the finances." Many states, including Florida, are considered "No fault" states and no matter the reasons for the divorce, the rules surrounding the division of assets and paying of alimony are pretty well settled. A bit more of this, a bit less of that, it's all about coming to a fair and equitable resolution of the marriage. For many spouses, this fear of discussing or understanding the finances led to constant fear, uncertainty and anxiety which was a major part of the difficult decision to divorce. Well unfortunately, the decision to get divorced does not make this issue go away, it brings it to the front! If you or someone you love is having a challenging time with their spouse or partner and can't stop arguing about the money when it's never about the money, this episode is for you. It's time to take your head out of the ground and do the hard work to review and understand your finances because getting divorced won't make those items go away, it will make them worse. It is NOT ok to say, "Well I don't understand finances" or "I just let them take care of it and hope it goes well" as the fear and anxiety that led to this final separation will only get worse as you are left to fend for yourself. Who knows, if you take your head out of the sand early enough and put in the work to understand your financial situation, even at it's most basic level, you may find that the issues of your relationship that previously seemed irretrievably broken are repairable, sometimes stronger than they were before!

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