Is it time to get rid of the wedding ring?

Vocabulary: relationships 詞匯: 感情關系

Nobody really likes divorce. When you decide to commit to someone, sign papers, swear eternal love, the last thing on your mind is that it will go pear shaped. But we're all human and it happens. Maybe it's a blessing that clever entrepreneurs have decided to take the sting out of the tail of divorce with creative ways to cheer us up.

Glynda Rhodes is one of them. This Las Vegas businesswoman used to organise stag parties and hen parties. But in 2012, she opened a divorce party planning company and says that business is booming. What does she offer the new divorcee? Her packages start with a night club evening, but if you pay a bit more you can have a round of 'got out of the hole' golf thrown in for the men or a 'I'm still gorgeous' hair and make-up pre-night-out for the ladies.

Those who feel bitter because their relationship went sour can try to bounce back with a celebratory cake. A bakery in Florida says they're getting three to four requests for divorce cakes every month. And what's a divorce cake? One on which you can have a picture of a bride dragging a groom by the leg saying 'take him to the trash' or one in which the groom is eaten by an alligator.

Some might look with suspicion at divorce parties, but psychologist Robin Deutsch believes that they might be a good thing. As the director of the Centre of Excellence for Children, Families and the Law at the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology, she must know a thing or two about relationships.

Deutsch says: "Many people find release through it. I had one couple in my office who said their vows backwards. I think it gives them a sense of hope and closure."

Everyone has their ritual. Some might even invent a new expression to deal with separation. Actress Gwyneth Paltrow has described hers from musician Chris Martin as a 'conscious uncoupling'.

The couple said they had come to the conclusion that while they love each other very much, they'll remain separate. In this case, it might be safe to assume that no alligator will be involved.