in a relationship, the often ignored pain of the one who leaves

Last February, Emmanuel Perrin ended nearly a quarter of a century of marriage. At 51, this optician made the decision alone, but for the common good: “There was no longer any communication between us. Speech had long since disappeared from our relationship, a symptom of our distance. We were not aware of it because our twins occupied the family space,” he confides. With their children leaving for university, Emmanuel and his wife are lulling themselves into the illusion of being only slightly impacted by empty nest syndrome, this feeling of sadness and loneliness experienced by parents when their child leaves the home. “But it was much more than that,” concludes Emmanuel. For two years, the couple was in name only. Emmanuel describes entire weeks without the slightest physical contact, exchanges confined to banalities. “At the table, apart from wondering about the dishes or the salt, there was silence,” he says. A devouring void. To the point…