Three years ago, Em & Lo intern Kristine deGuzman wrote a column called My Boyf and I Are Going on a Break, which explained her and her boyfriend's decision to have an open relationship while she studied abroad in Spain (despite reluctant reactions from friends). Now she has written a follow-up column called How I (Still) Make My Open Relationship Work.
There have been ups and downs in the relationship since deGuzman's return from Spain, but the couple are currently in a long-distance open relationship that is working out well.
We're so honest with each other that we rarely even fight anymore . . . We still talk to each other about our crushes, including one in particular that was so deep and overwhelming that I thought for sure it would tear us apart.
But even with the most destructive of crushes, honest communication was and is the key to making it work -- in this particular scenario, my boyfriend ended up giving me permission to date this person despite his misgivings about the situation. The crush fizzled out anyway, but I had even more respect for my boyfriend afterwards for being so rational and levelheaded about it all.
Read the rest at Em & Lo.