Nowadays many couples have normalized to have a non-monogamous relationship to experience what it is like to be with other individuals besides their partner and to have a chance to explore their sexuality.
Couples who have decided to practice a non-monogamous relationship means that they have both agreed to be with more individuals than just the two in the relationship.
In the article “What is Ethical Non-Monogamy?”, Ariane Resnick talks about why some individuals have decided to try having a non-monogamous relationship.
“There are many reasons to desire an ethically non-monogamous relationship setup. These are just a few of them,” said Resnick.
In her article she mentions a few reasons why these relationships happen such as, giving both partners the opportunity to explore their sexuality, some relationships do not meet the person’s needs, or having the ability to love more than one person at the same time.
Although these relationships may seem a bit unusual, they are more common than we think. According to the article “One-third of Americans say their ideal relationship is non-monogamous”, by Jamie Ballard, around 32% of the adults in the United States say that their ideal relationship is to be in a non-monogamous one, and 43% of the population in the United States claim to be in a non-monogamous relationship.
In an interview, an anonymous source mentions being against these ENM relationships since they believe that if you are in a relationship it is because you want to be with that one specific person and try to make it work as long as the relationship can last.
“If you decide to commit to a relationship it is because you want to be with that one person, not to try out other people and see who is it that you like or don’t, so if you don’t know what you want, you shouldn’t waste the persons time,” said the source.
Meanwhile on the other side, another source who also decided to remain anonymous mentions to be “okay” with having an ENM relationship.
“I believe it is okay if both of the people in the relationship are okay with having their partner be with someone else. I believe this gives the chance to both partners to see what they really want, and it wouldn’t be considered cheating. We’re still young, we got a whole life ahead of us to be sticking to one person, we have to have fun.” said the source.
As seen, ENM relationships can be common nowadays for those who decide to explore new things with different people, it could be a relationship or just trying to get to know them. However, this topic is still very controversial and some couples may still want to stick with having a relationship of just two partners.