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Polyamorous relationship: Would this type of open relationship work for you?

As I grow older I see the beautiful benefits of a monogamous relationship with my wife and soulmate are in part only available to me because I have closed the doors on other relationships. The wonderful result of our love is worth losing the thrills of sexual diversity. And our sexual expression is focused in a way that would not be possible if the signal to noise ratio wasn't so high. If I could go back and erase my sexual experiences before I met her I would seriously consider it.



This bothers me as it is impossible to do. Also, anyone who believes they are doing it deceives themselves. I would rather be honest. I will respect the freedom of others, but that does not change that I might think their choices are foolish. This is judgement, and I reserve that right.

My request was an attempt to keep it away from personal attacks. Those are the judgments I speak of.

The fact of the matter is this decision is not really based on sex and sexuality. It is based on the love and bond my wife and I have created with someone outside of our relationship. It would be to add to the relationships that already exist.
 
Now I feel like I would be more comfortable swinging from time to time with my gf/wife, whatever. I think it could spice things up in the bedroom to bring someone else in, and have that experience together.

You know, me too. It's still a lot of work - every person you add makes sex exponentially more complicated, but it's still simpler than adding another romantic partner.

But ya know, at this point in my life, I'm not even sure if I'd do that anymore. I lack enthusiasm for it. I feel like I've tried a bunch of stuff and I'm ready to be relatively boring and consistent for a while. God that sounds cynical. :lol:
 
Maybe yours does, but not everyone on earth is like you. Many people are extremely capable of loving more than one person, and you saying it's all in their pants doesn't make you right. Maybe it is for you, but you are not Katie, or Arcana, or me (capable, but not interested).

why are you always like this
 
while i definitely do not pass judgement on anyone who has chosen an open relationship, it's not for me. i'm also not a jealous person, but i wouldn't want either side of the open relationship thing. if i'm in a relationship, i'm in it because i don't want to date anyone else, and don't want to deal with additional drama from the outside partners who would be involved.

as for whether humans are instinctively designed for monogamy, my guess is possibly not. it's the better choice for me personally, however.
I have never been certain about monogamy and whether or not it was meant for us or something we have just gotten used to over the ages.
 
This is not just about the sex. A relationship is far more than that in terms of our sharing life together. But I fully understand your position.I wonder for myself if the desire to be with one person is something that was really within me. Was the limit of one person just a social correctness that I had followed? This breaks that barrier and adds a new aspect to life.

What's the new aspect of life though?
Sex with someone else
emotional relationship with someone else

Which necessarily means, what you have is not enough. Seriously question which part is not enough, and then describe how having Another person providing sex/emotions, would fulfill this? No criticism of the behavior, I'm just trying to analyze your logic here.

How old btw? After 7-15 years of marriage, or around middle age, I suspect there are also other emotional factors at play. I have had a moderate crisis of self as I near 40, and there are lots of things I imagine would cure it, but I think I'm wise enough to know what's going on and I'm working on how to get to where I want to be. And currently, I don't see "more sex and more relationships) as filling that void, even though my less intelligent lower part continues to claim it's the cure for anything and everything.
 
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My wife and I have had a purely monogamous relationship for thirteen years. This has worked for us. We have been legally married for four years now. Many times over the years we have discussed opening the relationship to others. There is nothing wrong with the way we are. But we have expanded our horizons views and idea's of sexual monogamy. Neither of us is certain this is how the human was designed.
We know a few other couples that have a completely open relationship and it has worked for them on many levels. They have opened to their own inner spirituality and sharing of life. It is a change in focus and another aspect of the multifaceted human condition.
A question asked is, is my wife enough for me? Yes she is. Am I enough for her, she answers yes.
Part of the thought process is discussion. Normally I don't think I would bring a discussion of this nature to a forum like this but I think the topic is worthy of discussion and even debate.
Would a relationship like this work for you? If the answer is yes, Why? If it wouldn't work for you, why? Consider and respond and let's keep away from judgments if possible.

It's all up to the individuals involved. So long as both parties are clear on the dynamics, you can at least say that. Which is a backdoor method of saying that even sometimes when the dynamics are crystal clear, when you actually act it out it can still blow up in your face. People think they know their thoughts and feelings well enough, and then when the experiment is done they find that they actually feel something else. It can happen. Something to note. Don't really know the statistics on that. For me personally, it wouldn't work for me. I'm not looking to sleep with as many people as I can, or experiment. I'm a bit selfish and wouldn't share my woman, and I guess I'd expect her to not want to share her man either. I'm happy with the dynamics of two, I don't feel the urge to iterate to higher numbers. But that's just me. Other people have to find what works for them.

The only thing I would say is be a bit careful on the "yeah, let's do this!" thing because even if both sides are clear on the issue and both sides think they know what they are getting into, it could be that the actual system will be detrimental.
 
There would be no long distance as she would move in and become part of everything we share. In a sense this moves us toward a woman's community. The community concept and sharing life has always appealed to both my wife and I. Right now I am still processing the ups and downs of such a relationship. The other woman is also in a thought process as well. We have agreed that the decision must be comfortable to all parties.

In my experience there is a sort of energy flow between people deep in relationships. You might see it as power, love, control, sexual energy, service, sacrifice, competition... it can manifest in multiple ways. It is one of the trickiest things in the world to find balance in this when it is just two people... when you add a third you do not treble the complexity but you bring exponential complications into play. I would think fiding balance in this arrangement would be a rare rare thing.

If I may be so bold, I think there is an interesting dynamic to consider here as well because of the gender difference between a group that is potentially "FFFFF" as opposed to a group that is potentially "FMMFF".
 
My request was an attempt to keep it away from personal attacks. Those are the judgments I speak of.

The fact of the matter is this decision is not really based on sex and sexuality. It is based on the love and bond my wife and I have created with someone outside of our relationship. It would be to add to the relationships that already exist.

Well if you think you can make a go of it, and y'all are mentally and emotionally prepared for such a plunge; the only way to find out for sure is to run the experiment. You only really know once you make a measurement. So in that light, if you've talked about it a lot, you both feel up to it, you are both emotionally secure and still want to try it; well go for it. You only get one go around in life, might as well have fun whilst circling that grand ball of fusion we call the sun.
 
You are only speaking more in platitudes than specifics. I am actually very familiar with people of various relationships at many levels.

What is the gender of you and your spouse? Are you seeking a man or a woman?
What are you actually discussing? It could be everything from an occasional 3rd sexual playmate, to a mistress/mister on the side that you both share, or integrating a 3rd person into your marriage - which is polygamy, not polymous.
Here are short answers that will be accurate 90% of the time.
IF you both are pondering a 3rd lover, this must be 1.) that both of you are ALWAYS together with the 3rd person intimately and otherwise - absolutely NO exceptions and 2.) that this 3rd person NOT be a regular person and would have to be replaced over and over. If this 3rd person is the same person who share over and over together, that 3rd person will compete for one of you. The other one is greatly disadvantaged due to the mundane aspect of life.
IF you are looking to integrate someone in your marriage beyond sexuality, this is very, very complex. You seem to be thinking of this of only what happens if you cross the sexual fidelity barrier. But like all relationships of which many start on romantic and sexual attraction, the day to day things of life come to be of increasing importance. Integrating someone into your marriage is POLYGAMY, not polymorous - whether you want that or not.
Accordingly, any 3rd person you bring into your relationship is a really big deal. EVERYTHING has to be worked out - and in advance. What about money? Who pays what and how much? What about property? Who owns what? Who pays for what? Time allocation. Dispute resolution method. What happens to property if you break up. What about a child - what is the agreement then? - even if all of you SAY you don't want children?
For anything other than picking up temporary 3rd lovers only for intimacy that you both are ALWAYS together with, anything approaching a permanent integration should be literally written out, signed and notarized in advance. I can not understate how important I believe that is, though few actually do so.
ANY adding a 3rd person WILL lead to a power struggle. It WILL happen. Unless all of you have agreed in advance how that will be resolved, it will lead to a disaster.

IF you both are thinking about it more as crossing a sexual fidelity threshold for fun or interest or whatever, a good way to do that would be to hire someone for this the first time - literally a prostitute (male or female such as you are looking for) - and then going at that with both of you present. That way you both understand that it is neither of you seeking a new relationship because the 3rd person is just someone you both hired for a specific purpose only. There is less risk in that experimentation because there is no relationship possibility and it understood it only about sexuality. That is first "test" to see how you both feel about it - and about each other - afterwards.

Rarely do 3 way or polymorous relationships go the whole distance, but I think that is sometimes for lack of recognizing the complexities involved and not addresses those up front - and taking it one step at a time. The challenges and problems have to be decided before they exist. Again, the CORE rule is an agreement that at least at first, there is NEVER a minute that you both are not together with the 3rd person - unless it a notably rare type relationship. I could write about some of those, but those don't seem like they would apply.

Examples include where people in the relationship have differing sexual orientations and those are actual orientations. If the 3 are not the same gender, at least one of them has to be bi if all 3 are sexual in the relationship - though not necessarily as 3-somes. I could write out all manner of variables that come into play regarding sexual orientation prospects.

Rather than just generalities, what exactly are you and your spouse talking about? Is it just sexuality with a 3rd person? Or more? If so, how much more? STUMBLING along to see where it goes is all but certain disaster. Rather than just talking about it in philosophical terms, try talking about it in realistic, practice terms. THAT is when it starts getting complex.

Inherently you are on dangerous ground. Also, just a note, sometimes when someone in a relationship brings up the topic they are secretly actively interested in specifically someone else or are already involved, seeking prior-approval before or after the fact.

We are both lesbian and the person we are thinking about is also.
We are considering a full time live in partner in the relationship. In every aspect of the relationship. We are already very close and we have talked not just as a couple but with her as well. She is open as are we but this is not a jump in decision and we all need to process all of the relevant issues that can and may come up.
I do not agree with the power struggle as we are all familiar with the idea of living in community and sharing. The one added issue is the idea of sexual contact. This is something that can only be considered as we have no idea the dynamics of this part of the relationship.
The idea is not based on sex but on the closeness we feel for this person. Sex of course is a facet of the process but plays only a minor role. This would not be the reason for our opening up our lives.

I can easily say I love this woman. I have deep feelings for her and my wife feels the same way. Are they sexual in nature? They can be and have been but none of us has acted on them.
 
No way I would be okay with my wife cuckolding me. That is disgusting and it's not a real relationship when one is skanking around with multiple people. If she wants to see other men then we'll divorce.
But is that really who humans are? Are we able to love more than one person and love that one person together with someone else we love. This is not a singular decison but a mutual decision to add a third woman to our family.
 
One thing that complicates this all is, of course, children. Who maintains the nest?
We have four children and she has one. The nest would be cared for as it is now. We all would share those duties.
 
I have never been under the impression that women are any more comfortable in general to share their mate with other women... do you see this differently?
Is the discomfort learn or is it real. Have we been trained in such a way as to see marital type relationships as only two as we have been trained to see them as a man and woman. We are already out of the box on the man and woman idea. Since marriage is a human construct anyway, why do we have to stay within that box or use those rules?
 
Of course - how the OP is referring to a polyamorous relationship is different than polygyny or plyandry in which one male/female has many wives/husbands.

Cultures who practice those things usually do so for reasons beyond 'we just want to' - in Tibet, for example, polyandry (when it is practiced in certain areas) is because of land-rights and how inheritance is divided and passed down. . . if one woman is married to many men (usually brothers) it is so they don't have to divide the family land up and reduce the overall amount of familial wealth. . . thus: the woman moves in with the brothers - they live on the family land . . . they jointly parent and there are strict rules put forward that govern how they 'share' her as a partner. They also help share responsibility for maintaining that land (subsistence concerns)

If each went their own way - they'd have to divide that land up - they're not a market-based society like we are: they rely on agriculture and some herding practices for substistence - they MUST have fallow land to do this. It's illogical to divide it and reduce it year after year - or populate it with many different houses to live in.
You are correct. We believe we would be expanding out love and ability to stretch and grow beyond what is.
 
Since marriage is a human construct anyway, why do we have to stay within that box or use those rules?

It could be (and this is speculation mind you) experimentally derived from society as humans evolved their societies in complexity and scope. That is to say we settle into the stability region, and on an aggregate whole that is when a couple is a couple (2). It's very possible that this is just the most efficient form for support of stable society (it's completely possible that I just made that up too).
 
I think you are right concerning traditional men - and most men are. However, I suspect that women can be less tolerable of an agreement to have people on the side - which I suspect is more often brought up by the man as a prospect. There are men who have a fetish about seeing their woman with other men, but that is a rare fetish and not a norm. I do think there is generally genetic hardwiring in males not to share their females and one only has to look at nature to see that is common to nearly all higher level mammals.

Social values do change. Bisexuality is increasingly common in women and that changes the formula. Sexual orientation can be more a sexual preference of one gender more than the other. For example, two women who are oriented more towards someone of the same gender both could fairly safely have male playmates. Ironically, for some obvious reasons two men and one woman can more more sense than the other way around. It's a whole new world as some people put it.

This would not be a person on the side. This would be full integration into the relationship. There will definitely be a time of growing as we become used to each other. I see that and it may be fitful. Not sure how that would play out.
 
Is the discomfort learn or is it real. Have we been trained in such a way as to see marital type relationships as only two as we have been trained to see them as a man and woman. We are already out of the box on the man and woman idea. Since marriage is a human construct anyway, why do we have to stay within that box or use those rules?

You don't have to, but what is required (imo) is to be able to tolerate whatever comes with the territory. Iow, anyone who makes a choice based on legitimate questioning, should be open-minded enough to evaluate the results honestly, and use hindsight in order to determine the merits of that choice. Virtually everything we think and feel can be traced back to conditioning and learning. The question in my mind is this: if you make the leap and take on another woman into your current life and relationship, can you handle it if it causes grave problems? If the answer is yes, then you are at least basing a part of your decision on reason and rationality, and not solely on emotional want and need.
 
Out of curiosity, is his wife cool with it?
We are both women and we are considering adding a third woman and at this point we are all deciding how cool we are with it.
 
But is that really who humans are? Are we able to love more than one person and love that one person together with someone else we love. This is not a singular decison but a mutual decision to add a third woman to our family.

To be fair, I think that was a response to Kori's post about his partner ignoring him once another man was let into the relationship.

It was a badly worded responses, granted, but I don't think it was about what you're talking about.
 
As for being in love, it's my belief that, if you're entertaining the notion of an open relationship, you really couldn't be in love anyway.

Love, yes. But not 'in love'.

Personally: I agree - because I know I'm only capable of loving one person: I cannot move onto another relationshpi unless I stop loving the first and start loving the 2nd.

But - consider the different types of love: I love my family (sisters, parents) and I love my children in a different sense (4 of them) . . . If I can love multiple children and multiple family members - I don't see why the more intense relationship love (for some people) cannot also be with more than one person.

It's not typical, I don't think - but I don't see why it's not possible.

I think some people who are caught up between two people REALLY do feel the same level of emotion for both.
 
I have never really thought of an "open" relationship, I do not have any problems with it either, just never came up. It seems to me that there might be logistical problems and all parties must be secure in themselves for it to work. I have had long distance relationships and I have never felt the need to "go else where" and I stayed true to the relationship. The person in that relationship told me they did as well and I never questioned their word.

The whole issue seems to center around what is a person not getting in the primary relationship or what it is they seek, if there are no problems, that they need to outside and have a third party involved.
We have both been monogamous in the relationship. We both find a deep level of bonding with this person. She is very much a part of our lives already and we have trust to a certain level already. We have the space in the house to add another.
It is now a matter of determining what it might do to our current marriage and what we have. It is a bridge worth looking at to see if we want to cross.
 
Aggressive I'll grant. Unhappy? For disagreeing with your judgmental and naive view of reality? If you say so.

dont get me wrong but generally you seem a little aggressive to me ,it is not just about this thread.

i never criticize your comments but you jump into one of mine and
accuse me of speaking for the others....

again i am not saying that you are wrong .you may think everbody may love more than one person at the same time..but it is not real love..
 
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