Japan finds the cure for Retired Husband Syndrome

Peter Essick/Aurora/Getty Japan’s divorce rates are set to soar this year, once new laws that make it easier for women to receive up to half of their husband’s pension after a divorce go into effect. As many as 42,000 women are set to initiate long-delayed divorce proceedings, according to one survey. Japan’s divorce rate is ...

Peter Essick/Aurora/Getty

Peter Essick/Aurora/Getty

Japan’s divorce rates are set to soar this year, once new laws that make it easier for women to receive up to half of their husband’s pension after a divorce go into effect. As many as 42,000 women are set to initiate long-delayed divorce proceedings, according to one survey. Japan’s divorce rate is a low two divorces per 1,000 people, but the new rules will surely change that.

So why are these women so unhappy in their marriages? A lot has to do with “Retired Husband Syndrome (RHS),” which kicks in when Japan’s so-called “salarymen” retire after decades of working long hours, often drinking for another few hours, and spending very little time with their wives and families. Once couples actually start spending time with each other after living essentially independent lives, tension—and unhappiness with marriage—rises. In one case, a woman inexplicably developed stomach ulcers, slurred speech and a rash around her eyes. She was referred to a psychiatrist, who diagnosed her condition as “stress-related RHS,” a condition estimated to be afflicting 60 percent of wives of retired men in Japan.

Japan’s divorce rate has already risen by more than 26 percent over the past decade, in spite of marriage guidance counseling and efforts to promote wife appreciation in Japan. Financial dependence has prevented many women from seeking divorce. Until now. And with a rapidly aging population, and an increasing number of men hitting retirement age, Japan can add this social problem to its pile of demographic woes.

Prerna Mankad is a researcher at Foreign Policy.

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