In our current technological culture, we use cyber connections to create many of our relationships. We use the internet to manage our social lives, meet new people, and develop both emotional and sexual partnerships. To find dating partners and make new business connections, we use hand-held devices to connect via texting, IM’ing and email. Not only do we meet new friends and possible partners but we sometimes use the internet to find friends and partners from the past.
At first glance, one aspect of that - reconnecting with an old boyfriend - might seem to be totally positive. Finding our high-school sweetheart can keep us feeling connected to our history in an exciting way, trigger heart-throbbing memories and make us feel young and alive again. But watch out! No matter how good it feels, or how innocent your intentions were to start with, a budding attachment to an old flame can encourage unrealistic hopes.
In the worst-case scenario, it can damage or destroy your current relationship. In other words, it can lead to cheating and affairs. Facebook is listed by the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML) as the factor for one in five divorces in the US today. And 81% of the country’s top divorce attorneys say there has been a clear rise over the past five years of couples who use social network contacts as evidence in their divorce proceedings. That’s scary. Can you imagine what you consider random remarks or flirtatious jokes being used against you in a proceeding that not only breaks up your marriage but permanently affects the lives of your family?
