The Sh!t No One Tells You About Divorce

November 7, 2022
The humorous latest in Dais’s Sh!t No One Tells You series (after The Sh!t No One Tells You About Pregnancy) digs into how to survive a divorce. Dais, drawing on the end of her 12-year marriage, offers strategies on how to get through the separation and successfully coparent. She recounts how after she and her wife agreed to separate, she found out her wife was seeing someone new and “exploded,” throwing out their carefully laid divorce plans and insisting on immediate decoupling. To avoid such rash outcomes, she suggests taking walks to clear one’s head. On dating after divorce, she encourages readers to be forthright with dates about what kind of relationship they’re seeking and to refrain from ghosting. Dais warns that coparenting might never be easy and admits she had to lower her own expectations: “Maybe landing somewhere between high fives and blatant animosity is not a horrible place to reside after the implosion of a family unit.” The guidance is largely geared toward separations in which both parents remain in the children’s lives, but the author’s animated style will appeal to anyone going through a divorce. One is unlikely to find a funnier guide to surviving divorce.

December 1, 2022

Divorce is stressful at best and can be quite traumatic for individuals who are blindsided by their partner's decision to end the marriage. Dais's addition to her "The Sh!t No One Tells You" series provides practical and supportive suggestions for surviving divorce and its aftermath. In clear, and, at times, profane language, the author describes her successes and failures during the dissolution of her marriage to her wife and its impact on her relationship with their children. The author discusses all aspects of divorce including its legalities, co-parenting, dealing with an ex-spouse's new relationships, therapy, and dating. Readers will discover suggestions for filling their time to combat loneliness. The author stresses the importance of developing a support system to assist readers through this ordeal. Dais describes the steps of divorce and suggests the ultimate goal is to develop acceptance, along with forgiveness, of both one's spouse and one's self. VERDICT While some readers will appreciate the author's no-nonsense approach, others may be turned off by references to casual sex and drug use. Readers will learn that surviving divorce is a process, but contentment is possible if one is willing to do the work to achieve it.--Lydia Olszak

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