You may love your partner, but that doesn’t always guarantee that they can fill every role in your life. Maybe you connect intellectually, but your sex drives do not match. Perhaps you have the same goals for your family, but you miss the excitement of flirting with other people.These disconnects don’t necessarily mean that your relationship needs to end or even that a problem needs to be fixed. For some people, it’s just an indication that they’re better suited to explore multiple connections at the same time. They may consider opening up their relationship. Open relationships are a form of consensual non-monogamy in which a couple has their primary relationship, but each partner can explore other sexual and sometimes romantic connections. The boundaries around what those other relationships look like vary from couple to couple, based on what feels best for them.If you’re considering opening your relationship or exploring another form of non-monogamy, take some time to learn a bit about your options, other people’s experiences, and practical advice to pursue relationships in a way that feels good for you and any of your partners. At the very least, let me walk you through open relationships.Understanding Open RelationshipsThe different words for types of consensual non-monogamy are not interchangeable. You’ve probably heard of polyamory as a blanket term for consensual non-monogamy. In fact, polyamory refers to a style of dating with romantic relationships between more than two people. This differs from open relationships, in which the preservation of the primary relationship is most important and generally limits the emotional significance of external relationships.Additionally, open relationships are not the same as casual dating, in which a single dates around with no exclusivity or commitment to any one partner. While one could argue that casual dating is a form of non-monogamy, many people who Read More dating, relationships, love
You may love your partner, but that doesn’t always guarantee that they can fill every role in your life. Maybe you connect intellectually, but your sex drives do not match. Perhaps you have the same goals for your family, but you miss the excitement of flirting with other people.These disconnects don’t necessarily mean that your relationship needs to end or even that a problem needs to be fixed. For some people, it’s just an indication that they’re better suited to explore multiple connections at the same time. They may consider opening up their relationship. Open relationships are a form of consensual non-monogamy in which a couple has their primary relationship, but each partner can explore other sexual and sometimes romantic connections. The boundaries around what those other relationships look like vary from couple to couple, based on what feels best for them.If you’re considering opening your relationship or exploring another form of non-monogamy, take some time to learn a bit about your options, other people’s experiences, and practical advice to pursue relationships in a way that feels good for you and any of your partners. At the very least, let me walk you through open relationships.Understanding Open RelationshipsThe different words for types of consensual non-monogamy are not interchangeable. You’ve probably heard of polyamory as a blanket term for consensual non-monogamy. In fact, polyamory refers to a style of dating with romantic relationships between more than two people. This differs from open relationships, in which the preservation of the primary relationship is most important and generally limits the emotional significance of external relationships.Additionally, open relationships are not the same as casual dating, in which a single dates around with no exclusivity or commitment to any one partner. While one could argue that casual dating is a form of non-monogamy, many people who […]