What exactly qualifies as an affair?
Well, some will say that having an affair is having an emotional relationship and being physically intimate with someone other than your partner. Others will say that even acts, such as thinking about, flirting with, or texting an ex or someone other than the person you’re committed to qualify as cheating.
Undoubtedly, the answer to this question depends on the person you’re talking to, i.e. the way they view this subject. And based on these answers, the only thing that’s sure is that sleeping with someone other than your partner is not the only thing that constitutes cheating in a relationship or marriage.
Are you wondering what other forms of betrayal there are in a relationship? Well, if so, continue reading to find that out …
1. Emotional cheating.
Emotional cheating happens when you’re devoting your time, energy, and attention to someone else to the point where your partner feels neglected. This kind of cheating involves having romantic feelings about someone else, be it a friend, a co-worker, or someone you’ve met online.
Additionally, you might feel like the person you’re having a crush on understands you more than your partner does, which can cause you to start sharing intimate details about your relationship with them and even asking them for advice on how to solve your relationship problems.
Just because this kind of affair doesn’t involve physical intimacy, it might seem to you naïve and harmless. However, know that it can always lead to physical intimacy and devastate your relationship or marriage.
2. Prioritizing a friend above your relationship.
Who could think that a thing as valuable as a friendship could destroy a relationship or a marriage? But, yes, it could.
Someone can get so attached to a friend that they neglect and ultimately leave their partner. People who have this kind of “affair” think that their friendship is more beneficial, valuable and genuine than their relationship or marriage.
But the truth is that real, loyal friends respect and support your relationship with your significant other – they don’t ruin it.
So, if you happen to have a friend who tends to change the topic of discussion whenever you mention your partner to them, maybe it’s time for you to think about whether you really want to continue being friends with that person.
3. Mental cheating.
Compared to the classic cheating, the one in which a person is physically intimate with someone who is not their partner, this type of “affair” is cheating of the mind.
This type of cheating involves having wild fantasies about someone who is not your partner and vividly picturing situations in your head in which you’re physically intimate with them.
Although this type of cheating occurs only in the mind, you still have to be careful about it because if your fantasies about spending a wild night in bed with that hot neighbor or colleague of yours lead you to flirt with them, this can turn into a huge problem.
4. Financial infidelity.
This kind of cheating means withholding information or lying about your finances to your partner. It may involve spending or loaning somebody large amounts of money, borrowing a large sum of money from the bank, or gambling without telling your significant other about it.
All the above-mentioned things can be as damaging to your relationship or marriage as an affair because they unavoidably lead to loss of trust and they hurt your partner on emotional, mental, and financial level.
5. Making a family member a priority.
This type of cheating occurs when you’re devoting all of your time and attention to a family member at the expense of your relationship.
Be it a parent, a grandparent, a sibling, or another relative, in this type of cheating, you’re so attached to them that you neglect the person you’re in a committed relationship with and you don’t allow them to take the place in your heart that they deserve.
Of course, dating or being married to someone doesn’t mean that you have to spend less time with members of your family, but having a deep attachment to the latter while neglecting your partner as well as their feelings and needs is simply unhealthy and can be detrimental to your relationship.
6. Cyber cheating.
This kind of cheating happens online. It can be completely anonymous; between two people who may know some basic stuff about one another, such as their first names and age, but have never met in person; or with someone the person already knows. Cyber cheating is carried out via webcam, chat, or email.
Many people find this type of affair harmless because it doesn’t involve physical intimacy. However, liking all your ex-partner’s selfies and statuses on Facebook or Instagram or flirting with people on Tinder may easily weaken the connection between you and your significant other and lead you to physically cheat on them.
