Agnostic.com

9 2

My partner and myself are married (registry office - non religious) swingers, we engage in recreational sex with others. We choose to eschew jealousy and do not see each other as chattels or property.

Our guiding principles are honesty about our feelings and desires and as long as everything is safe and consensual we do not deny our physical desires.

Is this wrong?

Flettie 7 May 2
Share

Enjoy being online again!

Welcome to the community of good people who base their values on evidence and appreciate civil discourse - the social network you will enjoy.

Create your free account

9 comments

Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.

0

No, it isn't wrong. Your marriage is a contract between the two of you, not between the two of you and God. If you wish to change the terms of that contract by mutual agreement, then that's between the two of you. You don't need the rubber stamp of a notional bloke with a halo to enable you to do this.

I was in a similar situation with my ex. We had a non-religious ceremony (in a castle, it was very nice) and, years into the marriage, decided on a sexually open relationship and to begin dabbling with the swinging and BDSM scenes. The number of people who were massively upset about our "breaking our wedding vows" was surprising. Even more surprising was seeing it come from non-religious types. We'd written our own vows. I don't recall exactly what they were, but she wasn't the 'honour and obey' type. I don't think any of them precluded a sexually open relationship.

The trouble is that people project their insecurities onto others with open relationships. They like the rule that "Once you've paired off, your partner is the only person you have sexual thoughts about, ever." Anything that deviates from that level of exclusivity makes them uncomfortable. I think a lot of it stems from not feeling that they're worthy of their partner, and that they are likely to stray given an opportunity.

That said, it takes a strong relationship to survive a sexually open dynamic. It turned out ours wasn't. That's why she's now my ex.

Thanks for the contribution Nicole. You're quite right. Swinging will NOT repair a broken relationship. I find it irritating that detractors use the old trope about STDs as a proxy for their barely concealed disgust at the practice. I secretly suspect that they would love to have a relationship strong and committed enough that could carry a swinging lifestyle.

@Flettie There are some nasty STD's about, of course. But each comes with a hefty dose of stigma purely for being sexually transmitted. When someone would rather have MRSA than Chlamydia, something's seriously wrong in the world.

Of course they're all proclaimed to be God's punishment for promiscuity. In reality, the mechanics of how they propagate generally require an infected fluid to be absorbed by an uninfected person's body, and that's something you've got to do certain physical acts to achieve. AIDS being God's curse upon the gays was always an odd one. Why has he never come up with a disease that primarily targets lesbians?

1

No it's not

1

Whatever floats your boat. If you are happy in your decision, why worry about other's opinions?

I actually don't worry - Just thought the whole idea of agnostic was to promote discussion around subjects 😉

1

Absolutely not wrong. If it's something you both enjoy, it enhances your reationship then to hell with restrictive cultural norms.

We deny ourselves so much based on what other people think, what society expects of us or the effects of our upbringing. There is so many hangups about and sexuality.

Happiness should not be conditional on the opinions of others. Enjoy yourselves and take care of each other.

1

That's an odd question to me.

You made a joint decision for your marriage and relationship. You seem content.

Who is the arbiter of whether it is wrong, but the two of you?

In my opinion, grown adults can do as they please, within reason and within the confounds of their relationships, and it's not for anybody else to judge.

It's not what I would choose for me, but rock on @flettie!

1

It is absolutely up to the parties involved to define what marriage is for them. The important thing is that you are on the same page with it and Honesty, compassion, and reliable communication are foundational factors.

2

Nothing wrong at all as far as I see it. My partner and I have dabbled a bit in the swinger lifestyle and have found that having that much trust and freedom so far has actually strengthened our bond.

2

I can't do it, and it makes me a little jealous that you can. LOL, that being said, if its consensual with all parties nobody else's opinion matters! Have fun and enjoy!

TimP Level 3 May 2, 2018
1

It is your life, your collective freedom to do as you must and please and nobody should be a critic at all! I Salute you guys for being Honest with each other beyond the norm.

Write Comment
You can include a link to this post in your posts and comments by including the text q:71586
Agnostic does not evaluate or guarantee the accuracy of any content. Read full disclaimer.