emotional affairs

Emotional vs. Sexual Affairs

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Emotional vs. Sexual Affairs. I believe it is a breach of fidelity when inappropriate relationships and behaviors are kept secret from a significant other; such as communicating online, using sexual innuendos, sexting, flirtatious banter, and sharing deeply personal thoughts and feelings.  When two people share personal information it makes them vulnerable, and vulnerability leads to intimacy and emotional connection.

Emotional vs. Sexual Affairs

Emotional Affairs vs. Sexual Affairs

An emotional affair vs. sexual affairs is the act of behaving unfaithfully and cheating on a spouse or significant other.  Sexual intercourse may or may not occur.

People who share their marital and sexual problems with a friend of the opposite sex begin to feel emotionally close to that friend, and sometimes that emotional affair leads to a sexual one.  In Marriage Counseling, I work with couples who are struggling with these challenges.

Victoria Milan, a dating site for people seeking affairs, asked 5,000 of its members how they feel about an Emotional vs. Sexual Affairs.  “Many people are searching for affection, a deep connection that can lead to real feelings, not just sex,” said Victoria Milan, CEO Sigurd Vedal.  “What kind of cheating is more painful?  It totally depends on the individual, and maybe on gender as well.”

As you can see from the results listed below, men and women have very different ideas about what is forgivable and what is not. Emotional vs. Sexual Affairs

Their findings include:

  • 72% of men said sexual affairs were worse than emotional affairs.
  • 69% of women said emotional affairs were worse than sexual affairs.
  • 76% of women would forgive their partner for a strictly sexual affair.
  • Only 35% of men would forgive their partner for a strictly sexual affair.
  • 80% of men said they would forgive an emotional affair.
  • Only 30% of women would forgive an emotional affair.

Researchers from the University of Michigan found that women viewed “forming a deep emotional bond” during infidelity a much bigger concern than did men.

Emotional vs. Sexual Affairs

Whatever your views on Emotional Affairs vs. Sexual Affairs, betrayal never feels good.  As a Marriage and Couples Counselor, I specialize in Affair Recovery and believe that affairs are symptoms of other issues affecting the relationship, not the least of which may be a partner who is inherently promiscuous.  I enjoy helping people learn why they do what they do and how to stop hurting themselves and their relationships.

For more information please contact me at (858) 735-1139

When Is It An Emotional Affair?

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When is it an emotional affair? In my personal and professional opinion an Emotional Affair becomes a betrayal when intimate information is shared with a person you spend a lot of time with. A buddy at work can easily become more than a buddy at work. If you share more with your “friend” than with your Spouse/Intimate Other, you might be having an Emotional Affair.

 

When Is It An Emotional Affair?

Emotional affairs are real and typically do start out as friendships.  They are innocent at first usually starting off as online friendships that move on to become more flirtatious. Some studies show that more than 70% of those friendships end up as actual romantic affairs.  Some things to look for to discern if you may be confused about when things become inappropriate or unacceptable:

  • You start talking to a particular person way too much online or at work.
  • You contact them during inappropriate times.  If it’s a work friend then contacting them via text, computer, phone, outside work hours would constitute inappropriate time.
  • Sharing problems or your frustrations about your relationship with them.
  • Talking negatively about your spouse/partner.
  • You start testing the waters with sexy or flirty messages.  You like what you hear and push the envelope to see how far things will go.

  • You meet them for drinks or coffee and don’t tell your partner.
  • You share secrets with each other and not with your spouse.
  • When on the computer your partner walks in on you and you close out your screen.
  • You start exaggerating your problems about home life or your partner.
  • You think about them all the time and constantly check your phone and computer for any contact.

When Is It An Emotional Affair?

When you connect with another person with or without a physical or romantic connection, you are essentially creating a bond with that person to the exclusion of your partner.  Especially when you have established that you can talk negatively about your spouse with this person.  You then set up a close and emotional relationship where this person can fill the needs that your partner can’t. Sometimes people do this unconsciously to see if this person will meet these needs.

Again, it’s perfectly normal to be attracted to someone you have formed an emotional connection with.  It’s just not appropriate to take it to the next step.  If you can relate to this article and think you are involved in an Emotional Affair and afraid you might cheat, it is recommended you talk to your partner sooner rather than later and be honest about your feelings.  If you need help in doing so please give me a call at (858) 735-1139.