Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver announce separation

Two weeks after their 25th wedding anniversary and four months after Arnold Schwarzenegger end his term as the Governator, Maria Shriver and Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that they are separating.

In their statement, they characterized their separation as amicable and did not mention whether they were filing for divorce. They noted that this was a time of personal and professional transition and arrived at the decision to separate together. Many commentators believe that the split between Schwarzenegger and Shriver represents a growing trend of long-term marriages ending in divorce in the baby boom generation.

Many baby boomers with adult children and children in their late teenage years are beginning to explore divorce as an option. According to a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center, 66 percent of baby boomers reported being less than enthusiastic about staying in an unhappy marriage.

Shriver and Schwarzenegger have four children ages 14, 18, 20, and 21. They indicated that they plan to continue parenting their children together.

Important changes in a person’s life can contribute to stress on a marriage and it has indeed been a time of transition for Schwarzenegger and Shriver. Maria Shriver has had to deal with personal loss over the last year. Her mother died in August 2010 and her uncle, Senator Edward Kennedy died just weeks later. In January, her father died after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease.

Now that Schwarzenegger has left the Governor’s office after nearly eight years, he has returned to his acting career and has reportedly signed on to appear in another sequel to the “Terminator” move franchise.

Sources: CNN, “Baby boomer breakups and the search for a perfect union,” Amy Wilson, 5/11/2011

CNN, “Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver split,” Alan Duke, 5/10/2011

ABC, “Maria Shriver Bore Grief Over Family Deaths, Alleged Affairs,” 5/10/2011