‘I deserved more than a disloyal relationship’

Closer’s psychologist Emma Kenny, 44, from Manchester, found out that her husband Philip*, 43, had cheated on her with one of her best friends, after six years of marriage in 2008.

However, she says that the emotional trauma and breach of trust caused by the affair meant that she could never move on.

Emma, who has two children with her ex-husband, Tyde, 15, and Evan, 12, says, “I suspected my husband was cheating, because he suddenly started taking his phone everywhere and always found excuses to be around my best friend.

“It went on for six weeks before I found out. I was devastated and couldn’t believe that two of the people I loved most in the world could hurt me so badly. I knew I would never be able to get over it, so I threw him out on the same night and filed for divorce straight away.

“I couldn’t have a future with Philip* because the affair would always be at the back of my mind, and I would certainly use it as a weapon in any future row we ever had. The trust had gone and my self-belief told me I deserved more – I want to be adored and valued in a relationship.

“I was scared because I was about to become a single mumof-two without much money, but I’ve managed to make it work and I’ve never had any regrets over my decision. I’m now happily married to someone else.

“It’s ridiculous to say affairs make a marriage stronger. All they do is prove that your partner is duplicitous and deceptive.”