'Slippage' is the latest relationship term that suggests your marriage could be 'torn apart'
Not to give you any ideas, or put you off your wedding day, but it's often said that 50 per cent of marriages end in divorce.
More and more people are deciding that they are sick of life with the same partner and opting to get a divorce so that they can find someone new. Thanks a lot, Henry VIII.
These days, nearly every single behaviour is considered to be a red flag by at least someone and why it's always worth holding out for that perfect partner or soulmate, you shouldn't put up with someone you've convinced yourself is marriage material if they don't even know how to do laundry.
Of course, there are many different reasons why a relationship might come to an end, with one of the main causes seen to be cheating, but sometimes just small daily things can grind you down until you can't take it anymore.
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What is slippage in marriage?
The dictionary defines slippages as a decline or reduction in the amount or rate of something, and this can easily be applied to relationships.
Whether it's a reduction in how often you get to be intimate with your partner, the amount of times they've bought you gifts or maybe just not taking the bin out as much, these things all add up eventually.
And that's why divorce lawyer James Sexton suggests that slippage is one of the main things that sends clients through his door.
How to identify the signs?
Speaking on the Diary of the CEO podcast, Sexton said: "Everyone understands slippage I think. You don't eat cake one day and suddenly your suit doesn't fit. You just make lots of little choices and those little choices add up and your suit doesn't fit. It's the same thing in relationships.
"When you're in the sustainable pattern of a relationship and you're focusing on other things, little tiny things start to slip in. You don't want to make a big thing of it, you just say 'it's not a big thing, don't worry about it'.
That is how the process begins and it leads right to my office someday."
He seems to suggest that when people get comfortable in a relationship and stop working on themselves as much, laziness and taking your partner for granted can quickly set in, so it's important to keep that golden period from when you first dating going as long as you can.
Is there any way back from it?
As much as Mr Sexton might want to convince clients that there is no way back once 'slippage' starts to set in, since it's his job after all, I'd suggest at least having a sit down with your other half before you do anything drastic.
I'm no relationship expert but if you ask for more from your partner and you get an effort to provide that, then there's definitely light at the end of the tunnel.
But if you have already asked for more on a number of occasions and you're not getting anything back, divorce them.
I don't really care - it's your life at the end of the day.
James Moorhouse