Sex File: My wife's crush last year has improved our love life. Is this normal?

The fact you and your wife have survived for a year suggests this upset has helped you find your way back to each other

When one partner threatens a relationship by developing feelings for a third party, it is a wake-up call. Picture: iStock 

Last year, my wife admitted to a serious crush on a colleague. Our sex life hadn't had much passion for a while. Her confession caused an argument and she spent a few nights in the spare room, but then we somehow started having more and better sex. Is this normal?

Normal is relative but intuitively it makes sense. When one partner threatens a relationship by developing feelings for a third party, it is a wake-up call. Couples in long-term relationships have a tendency to lose sight of each other. It's not intentional. Life starts to compete for the attention that was once directed towards each other. Relationships begin to function on autopilot and you forget to remind each other how much you are valued.