If you watched the latest series of The Apprentice, which ended on Sunday, you will be familiar with contestant Lorraine Tighe, a 37-year-old single mother of two daughters, who narrowly missed out on a place in the final.

In the penultimate episode, Lorraine told Sir Alan Sugar she had gone through some tough times in her life, one being that her husband had left her “suddenly”.

We don’t, of course, know the details of what happened in this particular case, but to have your partner walk out without warning, in some cases without explanation, is often a devastating experience. Knowing your marriage is coming to an end is difficult enough to cope with, but seeing someone up and go when you didn’t even realise there was a problem can be shattering.

Sadly, this is a not uncommon occurrence. There are many reasons why a partner leaves suddenly, but a common one is that they haven’t been able to admit how they feel and try to work things through. Some people think that effectively disappearing into the night will make the break swifter and cleaner.

What such circumstances in fact do is to heap further trauma on to the spouse left behind. On top of the distress of their marriage having broken down, the deserted partner is also left to struggle with feelings of bewilderment, disbelief and abandonment.

Such emotional upheaval can leave people unable almost to function properly, let alone make decisions about what to do next.

My advice to anyone who finds themselves in this extremely painful situation is to not make any decisions that are not absolutely necessary. Almost no one will be able to think rationally and it’s imperative to let some time pass before starting to make plans for the future.

That said, having people to talk to can afford a crumb of comfort and a dedicated divorce lawyer – who, perhaps unlike family and friends, will have encountered such situations before – can offer that. Going to see a matrimonial solicitor in the first, raw stages of your spouse’s sudden departure does not mean you are making any decision about how to move forward. It can simply be a means of offloading your confusion and unhappiness on to the shoulders of someone who will understand.

A specialist divorce lawyer will also be able to give advice on any issues, such as access to children, which need to be dealt with in the short-term. This can be helpful, as practical arrangements and legal rights are often areas that people in this situation feel most unable to face.