We were married 48 years when my wife died in January of this year. I still wear my wedding ring. We also both wore simple silver rings i had custom made for us as an anniversary present years ago, and I wear my wife's on my pinky next to my wedding band (her wedding ring won't fit).

Oh, I have Art's hanging from a gold chain of his beside my bed!!!!

Still wearing mine but it's only been 107 days. Hers are kept safe, someday will belong to grand daughter.

Hi Royal - It seems that your question is not so much when but what. Perhaps you might wear the rings on a chain for awhile. They would no longer just be sitting there, even if you don't wear the chain everyday. Down the road you may decide that you would like to have them made into a separate piece of jewelry or maybe you might just want to tuck them away. Wearing them on a chain might give you the time you need to decide what feels right for you. Good luck. Karen

I am not ever planning to remove my rings. I wear Mike's on my left index finger as well. I like them and see no need to offer up a sign to some outsider that does not mean one crap to me that I am single. I don't plan to have them melted down, moved to a chain around my neck, or ran over by a freight train. What we all do with these rings is personal and I will keep mine right where they are. I have no plans to move forward or start dating. I have no time for that and it is more hassle than it would be worth. There are many ways to move forward and my kids do not need a man either, so the rings stay where they are.

Maggie

Doing what is right for us is a personal decision. If someone says that she took her rings off, not to signal that she is no longer married but because wearing them caused her sorrow, then in my humble opinion, she did the right thing for herself.

Ah, wedding rings. Little big symbols of commitment.

When I was very sick with Bipolar Disorder, and my wife was supporting me and our young child, we had a pretty bad relationship. I was mad that she would take off the ring often, once I threw it in the garbage, and forgot about that when I took the garbage out. Gone. I regret it, but you would have understand the arc of our 25+ year marriage, which became better at the end, for a few years, I am so grateful. I kept my ring on until many years later.

Several years ago, I separated from my wife, to be able to work and take care of myself, my wife, and our daughter, without the dysfunction at home that prevented me. One day, I was on a bus and my wife got on, and sat in the seat in front of me, without recognizing me. That is when I removed my ring.

With or without the rings, we never "cheated" on each other, although we both agreed that Americans care too much about what happens to their partners' bodies. I guess that was one reason we were together anyway. My wife would blame being married to me for blocking her from creating a new relationship, but I think it was just excuse. She never asked for a divorce.

I built up a business, and sent $ to my wife and daughter. My wife put too much pressure on our daughter, since her teens, to give her $. By giving my wife $, I relieved pressure on my daughter.

Then my wife fell behind in her rent, the kind of crisis we had often when we lived together, and she decided to give up her apartment she couldn't pay for, even with my help. But she didn't have plan where to go, she crashed with me a while, and turned down all the apartments I took her to see. We ended up moving in together. Somehow I had been able to transform our relationship, and for her last few years, we fought much less often, and had fun together. I am so grateful we had some healing at the end, it took a lot of work on myself to make it possible. And I was able to repay the kindness and care she gave me when I was sick, when she became sick at the end.

What to do with the rings? Their initial purpose has passed, so it's up to you to invent a new purpose/meaning. Some people put them on a chain, if that is not too painful. My wife and I are Pagan Jews, so I put mementos of her (and my best friend who died in September, 2 months after my wife) on my altar. I thought about adding photos of them, but that seems just too morbid. Small tokens and symbols help me remember them just as well.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-qsHFzszGOI8/VJr7SfoluwI/AAAAAAAAXGI/ZJdWoXAIL_I/w1212-h682-no/IMG_20141223_234534866.jpg
Mario and Arlene both loved Christmas, I kept Mario's Charlie Brown Christmas Tree and it is the only tree I put up this year. "Maybe all it needs is a little love." ~ Linus

Last night I watched Caspar, and when the wife's spirit visited her husband on Halloween (Samhain is the time when the line between the physical and spiritual world is thin) I cried and cried.

Happy Holidaze to all :)

I like creating stuff so im going to try to find a nice frame and do sometype of thing with a picture of us together and put all 3 rings in the frame as well, i did not bury his ring with him.

It's only been two months but I still wear my ring and wear his on my index finger. I started wearing his ring before he passed because he lost so much weight that it would not fit him. He didn't want to take it off but I was so afraid of him losing it. I have no intentions of taking either ring off anytime soon.

Royal, in the time I've been here this must be about the 4th time this has come up.
At this stage for me your question is sort of puzzling. I understand what your asking, but you only have ask yourself what you want to do. In comparison to most of us you are very young so your circumstances are such that (most) of us probably find hard to comprehend. All I can say is take as much time as you need to make that decision. From the replies you have gotten here you have a variety of ideas to consider. Whatever you decide has to be what you will be comfortable with. I suspect at your age you may, in time , look back and think "I asked the question but the decision (answer) was one only I could make".
My wife and I were married for over 50 years so that makes a bit of a difference. The grief I'm sure is the same but the time frame is much different. When she was buried, her rings went with her. I still wear mine, probably always will. She's been gone almost 19 months.
Take your time, because anything that you do that physically alters the rings will probably not be able to be undone.

Best Regards, Geo.

Our rings are in a box with my favorite things. We had both removed them sometime during our time together here. My dad never wore a ring but my mom did. Since wedding rings weren't an issue with them and they were married over 50 years, they weren't an issue for me either. Neither my husband nor I cared for wearing jewelry on our hands because we always had them in dirt or chemicals where they had to be removed anyway. One day I took mine off and just never put it back on. When he asked I told him I was tired taking it off ten times a day. He said he was too and took his off too. I put them in the box and we didn't feel any less married without them. He was married twice before, and he used that moment to tell me how one time when he was waiting at the bar for pizza to take home, his second wife came barging into the place yelling that he was hanging around there too long and threw her rings at him. Sheesh! You can put an eye out with those things he said.

I took mine off after 16 Months ...I had worn his on a necklace right after his service...and one day in April I took it off my my hand and added it to the necklace ...I just took off that necklace with our rings about 3 weeks ago...again just one day I just took it off. As I write this I'm thinking about some of this crazy turmoil I had been creating for my self the past few months over having to have a step by step plan for my life. How and when I removed them wasn't planned and it was like I just did it...thank you for this post...weird thing that as I'm thinking of one thing a needed reminder pops in my head.I have been waiting for his diamond to be completed ..its being made out of his ashes..originally I had planned to put the diamond in a ring and then I cancelled the ring part and found a jeweler who was going to make a nice necklace with our rings and the diamond...at this exact moment I'm not even sure of what I want when it finally gets here..I'm not fretting about that either...who knows when I see it maybe then I will just know.....or not

I worked construction for many years and have had some nice rings SJ bought for me but I do not wear jewelry and have no use for it. Her rings are in a box and really mean nothing to me. I myself dislike jewelry and think it is a waste of money that could feed the poor. My 2 cents worth! I'm sure many disagree it really means nothing to me. Dewman

I still wear my wedding rings. I gave Morey's ring to our son and I wear my engagement ring and band. I wear it because there's a "comfort zone" in wearing them. I'm NOT ready to take them off..

I have not even thought about re-designing them or putting them on a chain or giving them to my daughters.

The significance is so special to me and so full of meaning that I find comfort in wearing them, for now!

Roz

When it was time to close my husband's casket, the funeral director started to remove his wedding ring to give to me. I told him that I wanted it to remain on his finger. With the exception of having to remove his ring when arthritis swelled his fingers, he always wore his ring. Strange as it may seem, his hand, with the ring on his finger and rosary wrapped around his hand, was beautiful and comforting to me. I always wore my rings whenever I was at work or otherwise out of the house, but took them (and all other jewelry) off when working around the house. I continued this for quite a while after my husband died, then gradually quit wearing my rings. Just recently I started wearing the thin gold band again. Don't know why...it just seems right to do this.