Why some couples give their marriage a second chance, according to experts

Effort. Patience. Emotional labour. These aren’t just the currency of professional success; they’re the anchors of any lasting relationship. While society often urges us to move on from discomfort, a growing number of couples are challenging that notion. They're pausing, reflecting, and choosing to return. Because sometimes, love deserves another shot.

Case in point: badminton icons Saina Nehwal and Parupalli Kashyap. In July 2025, Nehwal shared a heartfelt note on Instagram announcing their separation. “Life takes us in different directions sometimes,” she wrote. “After much thought and consideration, we’ve decided to part ways… choosing peace, growth, and healing for ourselves and each other.”

But just weeks later, the couple posted a photograph together, revealing that their time apart had led to a deeper clarity. Distance, it turns out, didn’t just create space; it made space for perspective. They decided to give their marriage another chance.

This kind of emotional U-turn is rare, but not unheard of. Relationship counsellor Ruchi Ruuh believes that returning to a marriage isn’t about going back, it’s about moving forward with renewed intent. “Couples often give their marriage a second shot because they still find value in the relationship,” she explains. “It’s a brave step, especially in a world that has normalised dropping everything at the first inconvenience.”

What brings people back, she says, is often unfinished emotional business—conversations still waiting to happen, affection still lingering, a glimmer of hope that this time, things could be different. “Distance or even separation can bring clarity on what truly matters and what needs repair.”

Rather than a sign of regression, Ruuh frames reconciliation as a mark of emotional growth: “Second chances aren’t about picking up where you left off. They’re about meeting each other again, with more awareness, more maturity, and a shared willingness to do the work.”

Relationship expert and author Shahzeen Shivdasani echoes this as well. “Some couples give their marriage or relationship a second chance because the first time around, they weren’t emotionally in the place they needed to be,” she says. “They needed to grow and evolve individually, work through their own trauma, baggage, and the reasons they couldn’t fully show up for someone else. Once they've done that, they come back to the person they love as a more whole, more self-aware, more healed person who is finally capable of showing up with more presence and love.”

As Shivdasani puts it, “Some marriages do get a second chance, some relationships do, because it wasn't about the lack of love, but more about the lack of love for themselves.” 

To try again takes more courage than walking away. It means acknowledging what’s broken and still choosing to mend it—together. In Saina and Parupalli’s story, and in those of countless others, we’re reminded that love doesn’t have to be perfect to be worth fighting for. A second chance isn’t a sign of failure. It’s a sign of faith—in the bond, in the process, and in each other.

Lead Image: Saina Nehwal/Instagram

Also read: Love, laundry, and logistics: The smart way to split chores after marriage

Also read: Navya and Sai’s serene South Indian wedding in New Jersey