KATHRYN TAYLO
BYU students are developing an increased awareness of the divorced student population.
'There is a stigma here at BYU,' said Jason Whiting, a student in the marriage and family therapy graduate program.
He said that the divorced students he has worked with through the graduate program feel that they are judged.
Tim Wright, a married freshman from Orem majoring in technical education, learned from his divorced friends that divorce is harder on those involved than he expected.
'I thought it was rare in the church and that there was no excuse. Now, I realize it happens more than it should and with valid reasons,' he said.
Stefanie Wright, a single sophomore from Portland, Ore., in business management said, 'If you're focused on Christ, divorce isn't an option.'
A divorce means the marriage was not built around the gospel and selflessness, she said.
Kent Godfrey a single junior from Sherwood Park, Alberta, majoring in Zoology, said divorced students have had a distinguishing experience and that each situation is unique.
'They're the same people, but they've had an experience I haven't,' he said.
'Chances are divorce could have been predicted during the courtship,' Tim said. The problems that existed before marriage will be magnified once married, he said.
'Couples need to make the best of the situation, no matter where, when, why and who you are,' Godfrey said.
Couples need to do the same things they did while they were courting, he said.
Tim said most of his divorced friends would rather work out the disagreements and avoid divorce. 'Divorce is spiritually, financially and physically draining.'
According to D. Russell Crane, director of the marriage and family therapy graduate program at BYU, said his research shows that it takes men an average of two years to recover from a divorce, and women will never fully recover.
Tim said he knew a woman who attended school after a divorce. 'She can't completely leave her previous life to go back to be a student.'