After steadily rising for decades, overall divorce rates in the United States hit a 50-year low in 2019. While marriage advocates are celebrating the decline in broken unions, their joy may be short-lived.

Divorce rates are expected to spike again in the aftermath of the pandemic. After spending 24/7 together — with little outside social contact coupled with the financial, emotional and physical stress of the pandemic — some couples are taking a hard look at their marriage. For certain empty-nesters, the pandemic was a preview of what retirement with their spouse might look like, and they didn’t like what they saw.