I married young and divorced my first husband over five years ago. After the divorce I retained his name out of convenience and also because after five years, it felt strange reverting back to my birth name.
Now, I am getting ready to re-marry.
The problem I am encountering is that most of our relatives assume that I will change my last name to my current fiance’s last name. I feel greatly conflicted. I would prefer to retain the name that I have had for the last decade, even though it is my ex-husband’s. I feel like I would be changing my name to make others happy. My fiance supports my decision.
How do I respond to others who feel that retaining my current last name is disrespectful to my fiance?
-Conflicted Bride
Have any of you faced this conundrum? If so, how did you handle it?
