People In Open Marriages Are Sharing Their Wildest Secrets And Stories, And It's Eye-Opening

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“My husband and I have been together for 18 years, married for 11, and open for 9. We practice ‘kitchen table’ polyamory, where we’re both able to date and explore relationships with others, and where our other partners are involved, welcomed, and celebrated in our lives as part of our larger community and family. In all honesty, I think most people would find our stories surprisingly boring and our relationships mostly uneventful. Most of our funniest stories involve sitcom-style shenanigans, like getting a video call to help talk a partner through tying a specific knot during a kinky hookup with someone else, or the time my husband was hooking up with someone and I desperately needed something from our room, so I army-crawled in and out as fast as I could, undetected. But day to day, we look like any other married couple—just with more laundry and detailed calendars. I have another partner of five years who is married with a toddler.”

“We babysit, bring groceries, help with chores, and they do the same for us. We’re all looking at buying a multifamily home together this year to make the support easier. My husband has another partner who is also a great friend and has a lovely spouse and kiddo. I’m currently pregnant, and she often brings by home-baked treats and has been so generous in sharing hand-me-down newborn and postpartum supplies.

While we’ve certainly had ups and downs, and it took us some practice to learn how best to communicate and advocate for our needs, we benefit immensely from the extensive support, flexibility, and care that comes from our relationship style. We also get the opportunity to keep things fresh and exciting, celebrate all our nuances, and keep exploring, which in turn has enabled us to come home to each other every day with more empathy and patience than I think we’d have otherwise.”

—Anonymous