To the Husbands Who Travel for Work: How to Connect with Your Wives
Let's face it: husbands who travel for work can be a strain on a marriage. Being away from each other can cause a lot of difficulties in a marriage. Whether you travel once a week, once a month, or once a year.
The good news is that there are a lot of things you can do to stay connected with your spouse while you are out of town. The tips below for husbands (and wives!) will give you helpful advice. You'll find it useful, regardless of your situation: dual income family, single income family, kids, no kids.
Let me preface this post with the fact that Josh and I have first-hand experience with this topic. Most of what is listed below are ideas that we have implemented ourselves. They have helped us get through any work travel he's had to do and we hope they'll help you too!
Effects of traveling for work on a marriage: why you should make an effort to connect
ABC News wrote an article on the traveling spouse divorce rate. They found that "spouses of travelers filed 16 percent more claims than did spouses of non-travelers." Frequent travel can cause stress and disconnection in one or both spouses. That's why it's so important to connect while husbands travel for work. It can put a lot of strain on a marriage.
Husbands who travel for work
Husbands, I want to talk to you first. There seem to be so many resources online for wives, mothers, and women in general. So I wanted to focus on your needs and advice first. I'll address the wives later in the post.
*Note: To avoid repetition, anything marked with an asterisk can be directly applied to wives. Therefore, these items will only be mentioned in the husbands' section.
Ways to connect before you leave
Here are some important things you can do before your work trip to make the whole thing easier on both of you:
Write your wife a note - It can be sweet, funny, thoughtful, etc. Just make sure it's from the heart! *
Schedule some alone time with your wife - It can help recharge you and get you ready for the craziness ahead. Need something easy? Try a box from DateBox Club or Crated with Love.
Practice self-care - Taking care of yourself is important to fostering a deep connection with your wife. If you're not doing well, you won't be fully present in your marriage. *
Note: #2 and #3 can also be used after the work trip is over. If you have a date planned or something relaxing scheduled for yourself, it will give you the encouragement you might need to get through the trip.
Stay in touch throughout the day *
I know, you're busy. Trust me, your wife is too. But it takes 5 seconds to send a text to say "I love you."
If that's all that you have time for, great. If you have a few more minutes, catch your wife up on what you're doing.
Even a simple, "That meeting went way too long. Going to lunch now." text might just mean the world to your wife. It will make her feel like she's there with you and it will let her know that you're thinking of her.
If you get another minute, take the time to write down 1 or 2 unique things about your day to tell your wife later that night. *
Begin each day with "good morning" and end each night with "good night"
And while you're at it, add in an "I love you". Even if you are rushing in the morning for that big meeting, you can still send a quick text.