People with a genetic risk for depression struggle most in the years before a breakup

A study in Finland found that people with a higher genetic propensity for depression tend to buy more antidepressants in the years preceding the dissolution of a romantic partnership union (likely the most conflictual relationship period). Interestingly, only women showed a short-term increase in antidepressant use following union *formation*. The paper was published in the Journal of Marriage and Family.

Romantic relationships can be an important source of emotional security, companionship, and support. However, they can also become a major source of stress. Partners continuously influence one another through communication, emotional reactions, expectations, and everyday behavior. When one person experiences anxiety, depression, or another psychological difficulty, its effects tend to extend beyond the individual and shape the relationship as a whole. At the same time, relationship conflict, rejection, insecurity, or a lack of emotional support can contribute to the development or worsening of mental health problems.

Researchers increasingly view romantic partners as part of an interconnected system rather than as two completely independent individuals. Patterns such as criticism, withdrawal, excessive reassurance seeking, emotional dependence, and poor conflict resolution can reinforce distress in both partners. In contrast, empathy, trust, responsive communication, and constructive problem-solving can protect psychological well-being and help couples cope with adversity.

Attachment styles, personality traits, emotion regulation, and previous relationship experiences all influence how partners interpret and respond to one another. These dynamics can create positive cycles of mutual support or negative cycles in which distress and relationship difficulties repeatedly intensify each other.

Philipp Dierker, a researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, and colleagues investigated whether mental health trajectories around the formation and dissolution of romantic partnership unions depend on the genetic propensity for depression.

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They hypothesized that individuals with a higher genetic propensity for depression would show a stronger increase in antidepressant purchasing (and therefore use) after the dissolution of a romantic partnership. They also hypothesized that these individuals would increase antidepressant purchasing after a romantic partnership union is formed and that these tendencies would be more pronounced among women than among men.

Study authors analyzed data from the FINRISK study collected between 1992 and 2012, as well as the Health 2000 and 2011 surveys administered by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare Biobank. The FINRISK surveys conducted health examinations of individuals aged 25–74 years residing in seven specific geographical areas in Finland. All surveys were designed to gather representative samples of the Finnish population.

Study authors paired this data with information from several Finnish national registers. Data from registers included partnership status, antidepressant purchasing, education, and age.

For this analysis, study authors used data from 36,961 individuals for whom both genetic and register information were available. The study looked at the period between 1997 and 2019. During this period, 7,888 of these individuals experienced the formation of a romantic partnership union, and 7,375 experienced union dissolution. The researchers analyzed antidepressant purchasing patterns ranging from five years before to five years after a relationship transition.

Results showed that 7.7% of study participants purchased antidepressants in the year they formed a romantic union. Meanwhile, 14% purchased antidepressants in the year their union dissolved.

Individuals with a higher genetic propensity for depression showed increased purchasing of antidepressants four to five years preceding union dissolution, tapering off closer to the event and disappearing afterward. The study authors explain that this suggests the period leading up to separation is likely the most conflictual and stressful. Those with a genetic vulnerability to depression may be more sensitive to this relationship decline.

Following union formation, women with a higher genetic propensity for depression showed a short-term increase in antidepressant purchasing, while men showed no gene-environment interaction. This finding contradicts the theory that forming a union broadly improves mental health for genetically vulnerable people. However, the authors note that the start of a new union may prompt a partner to encourage the other to seek help or continue an existing prescription, which could explain the increase.

“Findings highlight the importance of the anticipatory period before separation as a window of heightened vulnerability shaped by genetic predispositions, while showing little evidence that genetic predisposition moderates responses to both partnership transitions,” the study authors concluded.

The study contributes to the scientific understanding of the links between romantic partnership dynamics and mental health. However, using antidepressant purchases as a proxy for mental health is a limitation, as antidepressants are also prescribed for anxiety, sleep problems, and chronic pain, meaning the study captures a broader set of stress-related responses rather than just clinical depression.

Additionally, the study was observational, meaning it cannot rule out reverse causality—that depression may have caused the relationship conflict that led to the breakup, rather than the conflict causing the depression. It should also be noted that study participants were exclusively residents of Finland, and results may differ in other cultural groups.

The paper, “Do Genetics Shape Mental Health Trajectories Around Partnership Transitions?”, was authored by Philipp Dierker, Maria Gueltzow, Hannu Lahtinen, Mine Kühn, Pekka Martikainen, and Mikko Myrskylä.