ABSTRACT
It has been noticed that mental impairments, when present in marriages, can significantly lead to an increase in divorce rates. As a matter of fact, factors such as depression, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Post Natal Depression, Peri menopause and Menopause can bring on avid symptoms of mental illness. The purpose of this paper is to show that some forms of mental illness are peculiar to women because of their physical make up and hormonal structure. Men need to be sensitized about such illnesses so that they can recognise the symptoms and learn to live with it in view of the fact that these illnesses are not often of a permanent nature. These period may be unbearable to the male spouse, as a result of the manifestations of aggression and irrationality that may be displayed by their spouses. But breaking up a perfectly happy home for no fault of the woman is avoidable. This would also avoid unnecessary hardship traumatisation and stigmatization of the woman and children. This paper recommends that there is a need for increased awareness about the role of hormones in the life of a woman, and asks for caution on the part of the courts in speedily granting a divorce, whereas adequate counselling may have solved the issues between the couple. This area of assessing the influence of hormonal changes in the life of a woman is not yet well known in Africa, but in the western world, the awareness is very high. This is borne out of well documented research that shows that over there, most women actually ask for a divorce in their 50’s and 60’s, almost as if to announce a new found confidence, while their African counterparts are on the receiving end from their male spouses who either seek to end the marriage, or take succour in the arms of younger more stable women.
Keywords: Marriage Act, MCA, Divorce, Insanity, Nigeria.