Are either of you married? That doubles the number of people who might be uncomfortable with the relationship.
But hey, that's just me! I recognize other people have different types of marriages and don't judge them or consider their relationships toxic.
The above situation could certainly lead to tempestuous arguments, though!
But given this
> The idea of a sexual relationship with her is just gross, though, in the “I’m screwing my sister” sort of way.
There is no temptation
In any in-between scenario, you don't know your partner well enough to judge and should probably break up immediately on those grounds alone. Imagine not knowing your life partner well enough to know if they will have extra-marital sex? Inconceivable to me.
Many people recognize this pattern. There are countless stories, novels, books, movies, tv shows on it. People writing from personal experience. If you truly value your monogamous marriage then you'll avoid letting that tension build in the first place. That doesn't mean you'll never go out with a friend of the opposite sex. But you will avoid doing it too much. O course many people aren't even aware of this pattern so they let the tension build and then lose their marriage.
You can fully trust your partner. And your partner can trust themselves. That doesn't mean if they put themselves in that situation over and over that nothing will come of it. Further, you have no idea what the other person's intensions are, and even if the other person's intensions are platonic, they'll have the same tensions building.
I’d even go as far to say as people that can be tempted this way do not have as strong relationships as they think they do.
Do you really believe most people would stay faithful? At best, they might break up before starting a relationship with the person they're spending all the time with but it's highly unlikely at some point they wouldn't start something one way or another.
If you get that example then everything else is just a matter of degree. If my spouse wants to see an old friend of the opposite sex a few times a year I'm not going to worry. But, if they are talking to them daily, which is what the post above was about, then IMO, something is wrong with our relationship and I should be worried.
If the mars example doesn't work for you then my gut says just wait a few years and a few examples will come. Of course maybe you just know special types of people I've never met.
Yes.
You're asking me to believe that most people will betray their principles, commitments, vows, etc when it becomes convenient.
I have no evidence that that is the case.
If anything, there are numerous examples in literature of people staying faithful for years apart.
My hypothesis on this is that this belief that people will cheat is projection on the part of people that would.
> But, if they are talking to them daily, which is what the post above was about, then IMO, something is wrong with our relationship and I should be worried.
This is exactly what I'm talking about. In that scenario, there is nothing wrong with your relationship. But yet you say there is.
> Of course maybe you just know special types of people I've never met.
Right back at y'all.
The GP stated: > go to each other for advice and emotional support
The way I intended my marriage vows, this would violate “forsaking all others”. I go to my wife for emotional support, not someone outside the marriage. I would consider doing otherwise “cheating” at the same scale as a sexual relationship.