Can We Repair After a 25 Year Affair?

Where Should We Begin? with Esther Perel

Esther Perel Global Media

Society & Culture, Education, Health & Fitness, Mental Health, Self-improvement

4.7 • 16.4K Ratings

🗓️ 2 March 2026

⏱️ 56 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Through forty years of marriage, they built a life together. They immigrated to the United States, raised children, grew a business, and established a community. Six months ago, her longtime suspicion was confirmed: her husband had engaged in a twenty-five year affair with her cousin. Reeling from the truth, she questions how he could have done this to her. Overtaken with guilt, he hopes that time will heal their wounds. They arrive at Esther's office wondering what they can do to repair their relationship after this profound betrayal. Esther is returning to SXSW on March 14th for a special live episode of Where Should We Begin. Visit http://voxmedia.com/sxsw to learn more and preregister. Producer’s Note: When our anonymous guests do a session with Esther for the podcast, it is an act of generosity for everyone who listens. These sessions are meant not only to support the people in the room with Esther, but all of us who learn from their stories. Our stories have many chapters, and what you hear is just one moment in someone’s journey. So even though the sessions are anonymous, please remember that real people are behind them and they may be reading your comments. Also, please join me on Entre Nous, my new home on Substack for anyone who wants to live, love, and work with more connection and imagination. I invite you to sign up and become a free or paid member at estherperel.substack.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	None of the voices in this series are ongoing patients of Esther Perel.
0:05.4	Each episode of Where Should We Begin is a one-time counseling session.
0:09.6	For the purposes of maintaining confidentiality,
0:12.5	names and some identifiable characteristics have been removed.
0:16.5	But their voices and their stories are real.
0:24.4	Amen. but their voices and their stories are real. Immers yourself in Herbal Essence's new Moroccan Argon Oil elixir, infused with pure
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0:47.2	Try it now.
0:48.2	Herbal essences.
0:50.0	Surface repair to smoothness, nourishment with a regimen use versus non-conditioning shampoo.
0:54.5	AI can fix health care.
0:57.7	I'm Henry Blodgett, and this week on my show Solutions, I had a fascinating conversation with Dr. Bob Wachter, author of a giant leap, how AI is transforming health care and what it means for our future.
1:09.8	Dr. Wachter was not expecting to be an
1:12.0	AI optimist. What convinced him? Follow solutions with Henry Blodgett wherever you get your
1:17.4	podcasts to hear more.
1:24.1	They met for the first time on the day of their engagement.
1:28.3	They are an arranged marriage.
1:30.3	They had been promised to each other as teenagers.
1:34.3	They came to the United States together to hope for the American dream,
1:41.3	which they got to experience.
1:45.0	And in the midst of this lives a 25-year affair.
	...

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