couples who actively seek out sex with other people or couples outside of their relationship, but open relationships can be progressive and polyamorous.
According to Sexpert Tyomi, “People who want to be in an open relationship want to practice open love. These individuals feel more and want to share this love with those in which their hearts gravitate towards.” Tyomi notes these couples have a home base of whom they go home to; someone they truly love and trust.
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2. It’s not a quick fix for spicing up your love life.
Couples can fall into patterns where sex can become stale or routine. Some may think if they have an open relationship it will spice up their love life. This is a common misperception.
Spicing up your relationship doesn’t always have to mean sex outside of the relationship. Developing more intimacy as a couple is key, says Tyomi. Try playing games, sexting, or even sex coaching to spice things up at home.
3. It’s not a solution for infidelity.
If a couple has had infidelity in the past, an open relationship is not a quick fix. The couple must first resolve the issues they had in therapy.
Sexpert Tyomi explained, “The couple has to figure out why the infidelity happened in the first place, come to an agreement on how to move forward, or stay in counseling until they can repair their relationship. Having another person in the relationship will not fix this issue. The couple has to be on the same page in their lifestyle.”
4. Communication and trust must be present first.
Monique was the one who suggested an open relationship. She didn’t want to be dishonest with her best friend and the person she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. If you meet someone and want to explore more with them, communicate this to your partner. Determine what’s acceptable. If a couple lacks communication and trust from the start, an open relationship adds additional issues to their union.
If you and your significant other are struggling with communication and trust issues, settle these areas first before adding this additional dynamic to your relationship.
5. Lay the ground rules.
If you decide to venture into an open relationship, have ground rules. Sexpert Tyomi says you can’t just start going out on dates and hooking up with people. Run it past your partner first. Is this person going to be allowed to come to family functions? Will you be dating them? Is it a sexual relationship or something else? Most importantly, understand where your home base is established.”
If one person wants an open relationship, but the other person does not, it will not work. Both parties have to be in agreement and on the same page.
People assume people in open relationships have a disdain for monogamy. This isn’t necessarily true. This practice helps to make their relationship dynamic better. If you believe that an open relationship would work for you, it’s between you and your significant other!
Watch Mo’Nique’s “The Preacher’s” segment below.