The economy is supposedly in recovery, but layoffs are still prominent in virtually every industry. Many more people than usual can relate to a phenomenon usually restricted to the over-60 set: living with an unemployed spouse.

While being laid off and entering into retirement are far from the same, they both often leave one half of a couple with extra time on their hands, and plenty of pent-up energy that their significant other, coming home after a long day at work, can't handle.Read: 4 Reasons To Date The Unemployed

WSJ.com recently wrote an article that shared a … 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

Nice as it is to hear about indications that the economy is turning around, the layoffs aren't over yet. You've probably just heard that yet another colleague, friend, neighbor, congregant, teammate got the ax—or you will soon. If you've been there, you know how isolating and demoralizing it can be, even now that joblessness is more norm than humiliation, more zeitgeist than badge of shame.

How well you're acquainted with said laid-off person will inform how you proceed, of course. But some things never change—like the power of a reachout, a simple favor, and a sympathetic ear.

1.    Be there. … Read More

"Snake eyes!" said the doctor, rubbing the ultrasound wand back and forth and rotating the monitor so that both my husband Marco and I could see. I had no idea what he meant, but apparently Marco got it right away.

"Twins," the doctor translated. "There are two of them in there."Read: The New Way To Have It All: First Baby, Then Love

Snake eyes, I learned later, is what you say when you’re playing craps and you roll two ones. When you roll snake eyes, the lowest possible roll, the implication is that you might lose. But in this case, … Read More

According to an article in Forbes this week, the answer is yes. Writes Susan Adams, "Layoffs, furloughs and shrinking 401(k)s may not seem like natural aphrodisiacs, but according to experts in relationships and sex, the depressed financial picture is leading some couples—and singles—to better appreciate each other."I'm with the psychologist quoted in the article who notes that it's way too early for empirical studies, that it takes years to compile a meaningful picture of how the downturn has affected intimacy. But just for fun, let’s apply the myriad hypotheses based on anecdotal evidence to the love lab … Read More