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When she says the process became much easier after her diagnosis it could mean a couple things... One, that she gave him her blessing to continue the affair with the exception that he would stay by her side until she recovered, or passed on. Two, that when she was diagnosed he became more committed to the marriage... Honestly, with John’s apparent rendevous at the hotel recently, I’m guessing it was the first option. If she were convinced she were going to die - she may have given him permission to pursue the relationship, knowing he wouldn’t be alone after she was gone...

I interpreted her statement differently. When you're faced something as serious as dying, everything else becomes minor in comparison, and priorities change. And perhaps, on top of her dire health issues, she did not want her children to have to deal with their parents splitting up, too, especially if she thought she was going to die anyway.