According to The Pudding's analysis of Stanford relationship research, couples in excellent relationships often became even happier during the pandemic, while struggling couples deteriorated faster. The Stanford data tracked people through twenty seventeen, twenty twenty, and twenty twenty-two. Researchers found that happy couples who survived lockdown successfully practiced something called mutual meaning-making—they aligned on the pandemic's risks and agreed how to respond. Partners who conflicted about safety measures drifted apart. The data also reveals a quiet shift: dating apps are now the dominant way couples meet, replacing churches, workplaces, friends, and family. That isolation—meeting strangers from outside your social world—amplifies the emotional burden modern couples place on each other. We now ask one person to provide what an entire village once did: grounding, meaning, and continuity.

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