Criselda Kananda weighs in on divorce: We need to invest more in marriage counselling

Media personality Criselda Kananda says couples need to invest more in marriage counselling to understand each other in a relationship.

Taking to her Instagram, Criselda got candid about the difficulties of changing her surname after her divorce, saying the process is “a lot”.

Criselda split from her ex-husband Siyolo Dudumashe last year.

“Dear daughter, if you don’t want to change your surname after marriage. I completely understand, you have my 100% okay and blessing because, hey, it’s a lot,” she said, thanking the department of home affairs in Centurion for its “professionalism under strenuous circumstances”.

Criselda's post sparked a conversation with her followers who opened up about their journeys to get their surnames changed.

Criselda also spoke about her tough time going to court to get her divorce finalised, saying it took a lot out of her.

“I had to undergo therapy to restore and replenish,” she said.

She advised getting marriage counselling, saying it would help couples, especially younger ones.

“We need to invest more in marriage counselling. When you let go of what’s not working, you are first acknowledging that you are worthy of better and better will find you. Love is beautiful,” Criselda told one follower.

Criselda said the process of changing your surname was a “sad” and “painful” one, once you've said “I Do”.

“It’s a painful process and sadly you do this all by yourself once you’ve said 'I Do'. There’s no clarity in the expected doing,” she said.

She agreed with a follower who said changing her surname after divorce came with “liberation”.

“We need a shift in narrative. Culture evolves and so should we,” she said.

“That is your identity, part of dealing with GBV [gender-based violence] is not enabling the notion of being 'owned' by your husband. The slave era did that, and the name change is nothing in our culture,” she told another follower.