London - Forget talk about the seven-year itch, it is the fifth year of a marriage that is really the toughest, research shows.
And it is the third year which is the happiest, the study found.
The first 12 months after the ceremony are a whirlwind of wedded bliss, according to the 2,000 married people surveyed.
Two years after that comes the happiest time as couples settle into a comfortable co-existence.
But the fifth year is the most difficult, with couples citing tiredness and exhaustion amid increasing workloads – probably because this is the time by which many have started a family.
The seven-year mark is seen as ‘the wall’ which, if scaled successfully, paves the way for a long, happy and lasting relationship.
Half of those questioned said their wedding day was the happiest of their life but one in ten admitted they ‘didn’t realise how hard’ marriage would be.
Others confessed to suffering an emotional comedown after the high of their wedding – with one in five confessing there are days they regret the decision to marry.
Unbalanced sex drives and differing interests or social preferences are the stumbling blocks after the first few years, with one in three admitting the love in their marriage has declined.
Amanda McAlister, family lawyer at Slater & Gordon, which carried out the research, said: ‘It’s not very often that we see clients in those first few years of marriage but by the five-year mark, or a couple of years after they have children, we often have married couples asking us for advice.
‘The buzz of the first few years is hard to maintain and often people find that married life hasn’t lived up to their expectations. Often those clients will just be having a hard time and six months later their marriage will have completely turned a corner.’ - Daily Mail