With strapped wallets, tightened belts and the national unemployment rate nearing double-digits, we can only hope that rumors of the recession's demise prove true—and soon. Here at YourTango, we wanted to know how the economic downturn in the U.S. has affected dating, marriage, sex and family already, and which of these changes will stick when the recession's over. 

Getting Hitched

Andrew Cherlin, author of The Marriage-Go-Round: The State of Marriage and the Family in America Today, says that since people tend to pull together during a crisis, it wouldn't be surprising to see an overall rise in the marriage … Read More

Syphilis is called the "French Disease" by the Germans, the "German Disease" by the French and the "Polish Disease" by the Russians. Per some theories, the disease was the boon companion of European exploration (do I mean exploitation?) of the Americas. For the last 60 years the disease was on the wane in America but a strange thing happened on our way to economic ruin and recovery: the bacteria rebounded.

According to MSNBC, parts of North Carolina, Forsyth County to be exact, are elbow deep in the Syph. No worries, though—big retail came to the rescue. Read: How … Read More

Well, President Obama sure seems "fired up" and "ready to go," but that doesn't change our 9.7 percent unemployment rate. (Note: I've always found the unemployment rate calculations to be a bit fishy.) While various recovery stratagems are sure to kick our economic woes to the curb any day now (cricket sounds...), we need to make do in the short run. Which means your romantic life is going to have to get by on metaphorical ramen noodles, powdered dairy and boxes of Franzia. Read: Cheap Date Idea: Cook From Scratch (You Can Do It)

But when the going gets tough, the … Read More

It's a hump day. Here is the best stuff the interwebs had to offer about love, relationships and a little bit of sex this week.

My homegirls, Em & Lo (EmAndLo.com), have a crazy video taken from a MRI machine. Essentially, it shows a couple having intercourse and the woman achieving an orgasm. I suppose I owe someone a buck, the female orgasm does exist... Not safe for work, it being a MRI of two people making whoopie and all.

Yoibles. Over at Asylum, a fellow called Alan Weider pimps his book The Year Of The C**k with … Read More

I wouldn't go out with a guy who refused to spend resources—time, energy, effort or money—on our date. It's not about the ka-ching. It's about value. I deserve a life filled with excitement, happiness and sexual richness regardless of mine or my lover's bank account balance. In case you want the same, I enlisted a few friends and fellow writers of the sexy stuff to provide tips that pump up the heat without pushing out a lot of cash. Date On A Dime Without Looking Like A Cheap Skate

Eat, Drink, and Be Sexy

"Human beings are social creatures … Read More

Sometimes I forget things. I don't mean my keys or why I went into the kitchen, although I forget those too. I mean I forget bigger things. I forget to be thankful, to marvel, to bask in my life and the people I live it with.

This economy has driven my husband out on the road. He's working as a consultant. He leaves on Sunday afternoons and comes home on Friday nights.

When he was home, he did the grocery shopping and the cooking. He got our daughter up and out to school in the morning and off to bed at … Read More

"Let's stop and get bagels," he said.

I ordered a sesame bagel toasted with cream cheese; he ordered a plain bagel, plain cream cheese. The total was $6. I paid.

He hadn't even made a move for his wallet. And it wasn't the first time.

Six months ago, I was laid off from a job I loved and a salary I really loved. I left with a nice little pile of severance and had accumulated a substantial 401K. But I was single. It makes a difference, it turns out.

Dating, for a period post-layoff, was about free entertainment.Read: Cheap Dates … Read More

Periodically, things go really well. Property values grow at unprecedented rates. The S & P 500 grows 13% year over year. And, once in a blue moon, a single pretty good (but not great) idea will catch the right executive's eye and move someone from the creative class into the realm of the nouveau riche (and they will buy Jet Skis for all of their friends). Then other times, the unemployment rate more than doubles inflation and the best solution anyone can think of is to tax high-earners in excess of 50% of their income. In the latter scenario, romance, … Read More

Getting laid off by your boss is one thing, but downsized in your relationship? Often, that's harder.

Getting dumped always sucks, no matter what else is going on in your life, or in the world. And recessions are no barrier against divorce and separation. Just ask Jon and Kate, or Amy Winehouse (well, not the best example), or Timothy Hutton, who is splitting with his wife of nine years.

So is it worse now? It may be—the usual strategies for picking yourself up off the floor might not be so relevant. It could be difficult to … Read More