I have mentioned some of my vanilla friends in the past. Way back in the beginning we even had MGS with some of them. That event is what cracked the doorway to non-monogamy for Anne and I. That same couple has met some of our non-monogamous friends. Well the non-monogamous friends they met are the ones who typically throw the parties we attend. Anne and I have talked to these vanilla friends before about the whole swinging thing. They had tentatively expressed interest.
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One of the most common questions that gets thrown out into the ether by people entering the world of non-monogamy, is “How do you deal with jealousy?” This is a totally valid and important question, but it’s also important to remember that jealousy is a different animal in a polyamorous relationship than in a monogamous one.
Our boyfriend and girlfriend Julian and Hanne are going through a bit of a relationship crisis this evening. They may make a major change in their relationship to add some space between them to allow healing to happen. The intent is not for them to break up, but any major change can be like a seismic shift in the foundation of a relationship and the outcome is unpredictable. It’s a strange to be in a place where I’m worrying about my boyfriend’s reaction to making pivotal and significant changes to his relationship with his other girlfriend. We just don’t have cultural scripts for how to deal with that. What do you do with the compassion you feel for your husband’s girlfriend as she deals with personal issues and momentous changes in her relationship with her other boyfriend, who also happens to be your boyfriend? We get to make it up as we go along.
I mentioned that during Anne’s first full swap that I was on the verge of losing an erection. Well, that happened again and it was worse. Way worse. I know this is a common thing. I honestly didn’t think it would ever happen to me. I just turned thirty and am in the best shape of my life. Now I know how naive this line of thinking really is.
Ethical Slut, in her October 7, 2011 blog raised the question of how much of our “lifestyle” we should share with our children.
I’ve met a few poly couples and read about many more who have a Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (DADT) policy in their relationship. They both date other people, but have a rule that they should share as little as possible about their outside relationships with each other. I can’t decide if this is a brilliant idea or a really terrible idea for a relationship.
It occurred to me today – well, many times, but I only dwelled enough on the subject to write about it today – that the wedding ring, which once was the universal sign for “don’t even try to flirt with me” has lost that aspect of its meaning in my life. How many people do we know who are happily married and also romantically available? I am on that list.
Photo courtesy of Lady Grinning Soul Welcome to e[lust], the sex blog round-up- The best…
Finding people in your area to mingle with as a bondage related individual may seem next to impossible. Like swingers, poly couples, and other sexual “deviants”, (I mean that in a good way!) BDSM’ers do not openly advertise in the every day vanilla world. So, in an effort to meet new people in the community, I often suggest that new comers join different bondage related sites.
Dating is complicated when you already have multiple partners. People have this vision of poly people as having a free-wheeling lifestyle where they date anybody they choose and pick up new partners at the drop of a hat. I’m sure some poly people do that, but it seems to be rare. My experience is that dating people in stable poly relationships is more like dating someone in a traditional Greek or Italian family — all the extended family has to meet you and gets a say in whether the relationship is a good idea.