‘Financial Infidelity' is a warning Personal finance
Author exposes how money can become a threat for couples
'Financial Infidelity' is a warning

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Published: July 6, 2008

Do you have a secret credit card or checking account your spouse doesn't know about?

Do you hide shopping bags filled with new merchandise?

Do you and your spouse have constant conflicts over money?

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If so, you could be headed for financial infidelity, the topic of a new book, "Financial Infidelity: Seven Steps to Conquering the #1 Relationship Wrecker” (Hudson Street Press, $24.95).

The book by Bonnie Eaker Weil, Ph.D., addresses the recent shift in power and money between men and women, and exposes the money, sex and love triangle, helping readers uncover the hidden financial problems in refinancing your relationship and healing the emotional fallout. Psychology Today named Weil one of America's best therapists.

She writes that couples wreck their relationship by having clandestine activities with money, and "there's no such thing as an innocent financial fib.” A Harris poll found 40 percent of adults admit to lying to their partner about their spending habits, and 82 percent hide their purchases from their spouse.

Weil quotes well-known financial expert Suze Orman: "What happens to your money affects the quality of your life and the life of all those you love.”

Weil writes, "Talking about money may be the hardest thing you learn to do. Money is a hot-button issue for many couples and a trigger for power struggles.”

The book offers numerous lists, worksheets and sample dialogues to help couples know the warning signs of financial infidelity.

The book encourages couples to examine — scrutinize — their relationship to find the lurking risks of financial infidelity, which she says is a real and serious problem today.

— M.J. Van Deventer