Relationships

Every ongoing interaction is a relationship, and we talk about all kinds of them: friendships, romantic and sexual relationships, relationships at work and at home, at school and out and about in the world. Dating, breakups, shakeups, makeups; situationships, crushes, love-of-your-lifes. From figuring out what kinds of relationships you want, to navigating change or trouble, if it’s about you + someone else, it’s probably here.

Cuddling meerkats in monochrome

Highlighted content

Articles and Advice in this area:

Advice
  • Heather Corinna

No, you should not have to be romantically and sexually interested in a guy to have sex with them. And no, what you want isn’t bad. It is absolutely okay to have an interest in being sexual with others but not romantic; to want sexual interactions or relationships but not romantic ones. You sound…

Article
  • Mo Ranyart
  • s.e. smith

Every relationship is different, and when you’re polyamorous, that means that you may have several different relationships going on all at once. One issue to think about is the relationship structure that works for you, and how to make it work with your partners. Remember that this can be in a constant state of evolution, but communication is necessary for changes to take place.

Article
  • Mo Ranyart
  • s.e. smith

The start of a relationship can feel very fluid — you may date several people while you get to know them, and might pick up, stop, shift and start relationships at various points. Sometimes you can find yourself in a situation where you aren’t entirely sure if you’re “officially” dating someone at all, but it sure feels like you might be. As a relationship starts to evolve into something more structured or long-term, you may want to have a deeper conversation about the form you want your relationship to take. For you, that may mean bringing up polyamory — or having your partner bring it up, in which case, this guide is for you too!

Article
  • Mo Ranyart
  • s.e. smith

(Mostly) everything (okay, okay, not mostly everything, but a lot) you wanted to know about polyamory.

Article
  • s.e. smith

Some people find disabled bodies — not disabled people — sexually stimulating. That means seeing your body as a sexual object.

Article
  • Sam Wall

What to do, and what to avoid like the plague, when you’re crushing on someone hard.

Advice
  • Sam Wall

You’ve got a few layers to this question, so let’s peel them off and look at them one by one. Let’s get “is this normal” out of the way first. Normal is a deeply unhelpful concept when it comes to sex. We can talk about how common certain behaviors or desires are, although even then that may not be…

Advice
  • Sam Wall

“He was genuinely trying to understand me and listen and everything, but he just didn’t get it, because he’s been watching porn for years and never really known anything else? About a week ago we were texting and he asked me if I had ever sexted with anyone before, and I said I had (which wasn’t a…

Advice
  • Sam Wall

It’s not surprising that this situation has you confused. It feels straight out of a romantic comedy, and when you take the plot of a romantic comedy and plop it into the real world it tends to feel much less humorous and more like someone stuck your head and heart in a blender and hit the “on”…

Advice
  • Mo Ranyart

First off, I want to talk about the idea of being “damaged goods.” I know this is a very common way to refer to people who have mental health struggles, or a history of trauma, but I encourage you to think about yourself, and other people who may be having similar concerns in their own lives, in a…