Treating Infidelity and Comorbid Depression: A Case Study Involving Military Deployment

Sexual infidelity has a high prevalence in both representative community and treatment-seeking samples, and has been identified by experienced therapists as one of the more difficult couple problems to treat. Disclosure or discovery of infidelity triggers a broad range of adverse relationship and individual consequences, including increased risk of major depression and suicidality in either one or both partners. We describe an integrative approach for promoting recovery from infidelity, drawing on empirically supported treatments for couple distress as well as empirical literature regarding recovery from interpersonal trauma and relationship injuries. Using an exemplar case study involving military deployment, we feature three stages of intervention emphasizing containment of initial emotional trauma, understanding factors contributing to vulnerability to an affair, and strategies for helping partners to move on emotionally, either together or separately. The integrative treatment approach described here is the first treatment designed specifically to assist couples' recovery from an affair to garner empirical evidence of its efficacy.