With strapped wallets, tightened belts and the national unemployment rate nearing double-digits, we can only hope that rumors of the recession's demise prove true—and soon. Here at YourTango, we wanted to know how the economic downturn in the U.S. has affected dating, marriage, sex and family already, and which of these changes will stick when the recession's over. 

Getting Hitched

Andrew Cherlin, author of The Marriage-Go-Round: The State of Marriage and the Family in America Today, says that since people tend to pull together during a crisis, it wouldn't be surprising to see an overall rise in the marriage … Read More

Up until recently, if anyone had bothered to ask about my sex drive (which they never did), I would have said it was normal. I enjoyed sex as much as the next woman. But like many urban professionals, I was often too busy thinking about, say, the implications of some new regulation to give much thought to the sexual impulses that spiraled through my brain each day like dust motes.

Now that I have traded in my dry-cleaned, button-down, inoffensively colored work shirts for a set of neon green pajamas, the dust is gathering attention.

If I'm any example, Read More

Okay all you lovers out there, so what do you know about dating, living and loving in the recession? Budgets for lavish dates and gifts have shrunk; long-term plans for established relationships have been somewhat downsized; and we're all perhaps a little more deliberate in our dating than we were in the boom times.

Things have changed—not least in the way you appreciate your mate. Below, some of the new realities that have emerged in these tough times:

You don't need to spend a lot to get a lot. In a guest post, "Funky Brown Chick" … Read More

I wouldn't go out with a guy who refused to spend resources—time, energy, effort or money—on our date. It's not about the ka-ching. It's about value. I deserve a life filled with excitement, happiness and sexual richness regardless of mine or my lover's bank account balance. In case you want the same, I enlisted a few friends and fellow writers of the sexy stuff to provide tips that pump up the heat without pushing out a lot of cash. Date On A Dime Without Looking Like A Cheap Skate

Eat, Drink, and Be Sexy

"Human beings are social creatures … Read More

Let's face it: The economy may be improving, but blast that lagging economic indicator—unemployment is around to stay, at least for a little bit. And while you may have plenty of time on your hands, the reality is that, more likely than not, your pockets will be a little bit emptier than desired.

Never fear, necessity is the mother of invention! And there are plenty of ways you can save money on a date (without looking like a cheap skate). Clever, low-cost date ideas will get you out and about in the world with your sweetheart and allow … Read More

Those who read this column know that I’ve been writing very personally about how the downturn has affected my relationship. In all honesty, I'm starting to fear that by focusing on what’s happening inside relationships, we may be losing sight of larger contexts—what could and should be happening in the structures that govern our lives.Read: Is The Recession Changing Men's Values?

Whoever invented the notion that a wife who earns less than her husband has a career that is, by definition, "expendable"? The ubiquity of this sentence—"she has an expendable career"—was brought home to me once again when … Read More

The economy is supposedly in recovery, but layoffs are still prominent in virtually every industry. Many more people than usual can relate to a phenomenon usually restricted to the over-60 set: living with an unemployed spouse.

While being laid off and entering into retirement are far from the same, they both often leave one half of a couple with extra time on their hands, and plenty of pent-up energy that their significant other, coming home after a long day at work, can't handle.Read: 4 Reasons To Date The Unemployed

WSJ.com recently wrote an article that shared a … Read More

Are you a frustrated fashion girl just aching to meet your finance man in shining Armani? Are you sick and tired of this whole "work" thing and ready just to throw in the resume and become a "tennis mom?" Marriage And Health: Damned If You Do And Don't

If you answered "yes" to any of the above questions than boy do we have the happy hour for you!

The Fashion Meets Finance party—a perfume-drenched page ripped right out of Patrick Bateman's American Psycho—is where designer skirts and suits click-clack their way to midtown and (God willing!) get one … Read More

Raj had me almost at hello, but he didn't seem to realize it. As so often happens, the same was true in the reverse, as well. We had sat in the park after a friend suggested we meet and shared stories from our lives. We parted with no further plans.

And then, out of nowhere, an email: "Call me urgently." Two minutes later, we were on the phone. He was charming and funny—and he had a proposal, a potentially very lucrative project that would come from one of  his clients.

It's always tricky to mix up work and romance, but in … Read More