About the Book

My Marriage Sabbatical:

A MEMOIR OF SOLO TRAVEL AND LASTING LOVE

What if you could have a different marriage without having to get a different spouse? At age sixty, marital therapist, Leah Fisher, does just that. She wants to explore the world; he wants to focus on his career. After much discussion, the couple agrees to be apart for a year, each pursuing their own dream while arranging for periodic reunions and nurturing a committed relationship. Leah’s solo journey leads her to a shaman in the Amazon, a Colombian drug runner, a massive earthquake, volunteer projects, loving families, and lots of swimming in warm oceans. The couple’s relationship changes…for the better. Unknowingly, they’ve been reconfiguring their idea of a good marriage, shaping one that better suits their needs in the second half of life. This helpful and often humorous book combines an intimate view of a long-term marriage, guidance in couples’ negotiation, healing adventures, and an inspiring example of individual expression and relational growth in later life.

My Marriage Sabbatical about honoring personal dreams, maintaining marital friendship, and learning to cherish imperfect relationships.

What People Are Saying

  • “Leah Fisher has written a book that will touch your heart, open your eyes, and excite your imagination. Her journey is one that many women would love to take. She and her husband reach an agreement that brings a deeply meaningful dream to life. Read this book; you may discover a dream of your own!”

    —Lynne Twist, cofounder of the Pachamama Alliance and author of The Soul of Money and Living a Committed Life

  • “A marriage sabbatical! What a brilliant idea! With courage, goodwill, psychological know-how, and a golden, wide-open heart, psychotherapist Leah Fisher dared to propose, negotiate, and carry out a year off from her thirty-year marriage, and managed to enrich herself, her marriage, and the people she met in her travels. Readers will be captivated by this bold, original, audacious experiment, colorfully described with zest, a shrewd, observing eye, and breathtaking honesty.” 

    — Judith Viorst, author of Necessary Losses and Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

  • “Leah Fisher tells a tale of two fascinating journeys. The first involves a negotiation with her husband that reshapes their marriage. The second journey includes charmingly described accounts of living in a series of Asian and Latin American cultures. Both parts of this unusual exploration are beautifully written. My Marriage Sabbatical has much to teach us about the challenging but rewarding opportunities for partners to follow their independent dreams within long-term marriages.”

    — Carolyn and Philip Cowan, directors of the Becoming a Family Project and authors of When Partners Become Parents

  • “Long a trusted source for the media on sustaining a successful marriage, Leah Fisher now brings us a kind of Eat, Pray, Love for the faithfully married set. This book is a feast of wisdom for anyone struggling to balance midlife self-expression with marital commitment, and it is essential reading for spouses considering a breakup as balm for a restless soul. Leah not only knows how to counsel couples on marriage—she demonstrates firsthand what it takes to sustain a vibrant, lifelong union.” 

    —Sue Shellenbarger, former Work & Family columnist for The Wall Street Journal

  • “With the insights of a longtime couples therapist, the exuberance of a woman in her sixties pursuing her path, and the sensitivity of a wife committed to her marriage, Leah Fisher inspires us by sharing her solo adventures during a grown-up gap year. In Costa Rica, Guatemala, Colombia, Cuba, and Indonesia, Fisher combines community service with exploring new cultures and making friends of all ages. This book is a dynamic blueprint for readers ready to address their own heartfelt desires.”

    —Elizabeth Fishel, author of The Men in Our Lives and Getting to 30: A Parent’s Guide to the 20-Something Years

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