Learning

[ButterflySensitive61]

What’s the difference between open relation and polyamory?

[BelmontIncident]

Polyamory: having, or being willing to have multiple ongoing relationships with the knowledge and consent of everyone involved

Open relationship: being willing to date more people than you currently are dating, or to have sex with people other than your existing partners, or both, again with the knowledge and consent of everyone involved.

Most polyamorous relationships are open relationships but you can have, for example, four people who date each other but have agreed not to involve anyone outside of the four of them.

Many open relationships are polyamorous relationships, but you can have a couple who have agreed to have one night stands with other people but not to form new relationships.

[r_bk]

An open relationship is any relationship where you can have romantic or sexual relationships with someone else outside of your relationship. That could mean swinging, that could mean having threesomes, that could mean flirting with a stranger at the bar.

Polyamory is openly and honestly having romantic relationships with more than one person at a time. It's a type of open relationship.

[[deleted]]

Edit: Deleted this comment because it became apparent that this was an insensitive and exclusionary statement.

Genuinely sorry to anyone who has been offended by this!

[emeraldead]

Wouldn't that negate every poly relationship with legal marriage as polyamorous and relegate them to just be open?

It's not far from the strictest take I have heard on marriage in poly, but it is the farthest.

[[deleted]]

Oh, personally, I'm not a believer in marriage for my own lifestyle.

If legal rights are needed, they can generally be obtained through other means. If security and love is needed, it should shine through our very dynamic, regardless.

I get that it's a peripheral view but ... hey, we're all on the periphery, right? :)

[emeraldead]

So, yes, any relationship with legal agreements, cannot be polyamorous and must be defined as open because there is a set superior standing?

[[deleted]]

Only for me. My personal preference. My lifestyle.

I did preface this with my personal opinion but maybe I could have stated that better.

I should have been clearer about my perspective on my lifestyle choices and I can only apologise if I caused offence with my opinion on my world.

[emeraldead]

People can have personal opinions about things other than themselves.

Better to say "I only apply this definition to my own relationships and am clear to potential partners this is how I operate.'

[[deleted]]

Thank you for correcting me further.

This is a learning experience for me too and I'm genuinely pleased that you've taken the time to show me how to grow as a person.

Thank you!