When Your Wife Wants Half Open Marriage: What To Do?

Last Updated on June 13, 2022 by Team CrazyJackz

Marriage is believed to be a legal, conceptual and contractual relationship between two individuals. But the custom of a closed marriage is of less preference these days. Most couples are choosing a one-sided open marriage (half-open marriage) or polyamory (open marriage). Either way, the concerning parties should both agree to it and be okay with it.

When your wife wants Half-open marriage and you are Monogamous:

The fact that you are monogamous and in love with your partner can prevent you from accepting your wife’s decision. Having her interact with other men and having a lively and enthusiastic relationship could be distressing. You might also want to keep the closed marriage. However, if she is still open to sharing her love with new people, then you might want to find a new way to revive yourself from this mess.

It is quite natural for you to feel anxious and upset about how your marriage might change. How much ever-progressive you are, there might be a part of you that would like to keep the marriage you had.

So, what does it mean when your wife wants half open marriage? What should you do? Why does your wife want a half open marriage? Do half open marriages work? Let us see..

What does it mean when your wife wants Half-open marriage or one-sided open marriage? What is it?

A half-open marriage (one-sided open marriage) is the one in which either of the partners chooses to keep an open relationship with other individuals, but demands the other partner to remain monogamous (closed relationship).

The person who chooses open marriage (polyamory) can meet new people and have any sort of relationship with others including physical relations. This relationship helps the polyamorous partner to have every chance to maintain several relationships while the monogamous partner (you) ends up feeling distressed and eventually lead to an unhappy life.

Why does my wife want a Half open marriage?

When Your Wife Wants Half Open Marriage: What To Do?

Do not blame yourself: You must first learn that your wife’s decision to a half-open marriage is not because of you. Just like you are distressed, she might have been feeling unhappy and might have felt suppressed or being weighed down due to the marriage. Always remember it was not you who could not find happiness, but it was your partner. Whatever be the reason polyamory is kind of a convenient way to say or declare that you are cheating on your partner.

The reasons behind this could be many. Her sexual alignment or other factors might have made your marriage boring and monotonous. One reason could be your wife might have felt unhappy and dissatisfied in the marriage with you. She might have found that there is no more open communication between you two. She might have felt that you are giving less time to her because of your work and financial stress. There might be a lost vibe between you two that she finds impossible to restore. Or it could also be the NRE (new relationship energy) that makes her feel livelier and happening.

Another reason could be she is a person who cannot be happy with one man, she would be a type who loves to play around with men and end up having sex and relationship with anyone with no ropes attached. Societal status might also be a reason why she wants you to remain monogamous while she gets to enjoy and have pleasure.

What to do if your wife wants a Half open marriage? What are the possible ways out of this?

What to do if your wife wants a half open marriage?

So, coming to the next part.. What can you do to help yourself deal with this situation? What could you do if your wife demands a half open relationship? Will you ever be able to accept this? Will you continue to resent your wife? If you have an answer to these questions, well! I guess you got your solution.

So, What are the possible solutions?

  1. Be progressive and accept it: Polyamory is a new normal in the modern world. Some couples happily enter into an open/half open marriage and enjoy a sexually and emotionally active social life. This is the case when both partners are polyamorous and are open to relationships outside of marriage. If you are a progressive person or believe yourself to be one, you could accept your wife’s demand and let her enjoy a bond-free social life which could be both sexual or mere friendship. Your wife might be overwhelmed by the new relationship energy (NRE), this might be beneficial for you as she might transfer that new positive energy onto your relationship as well. It might also lead to an active sexual life for you and your wife.
  1. Talk to your wife: If you are not ready to accept the half open relationship your wife wants, the best thing would be to talk with her. Tell your wife how you feel about it. Tell her that you are not ready to accept the part that she is in an open relationship. If she is not ready to hear you out, then it’s an attempt in vain. If you want to save your marriage talk about possible solutions to revive your relationship with your wife. Trips, and reliving the good old memories could all be a positive attempt toward this.
  1. Divorce: If you could not accept the fact and end up resenting yourself or blaming yourself for what’s happening, it will always be better if you end your unfruitful marriage. One thing is for sure, how much you try to accept your wife’s half open marriage, you will only end up miserable and hurt. Why do you want to torture yourself by forcing yourself into a monogamous relationship with a polyamorous wife?

Remember, Your wife had made it clear that she could not be loving only you in her life, that she wishes to share her love and finds more pleasure in multiple relationships. And she demanding you to remain monogamous is in a way selfish or entwining you in a relationship that only you are interested in.

The argument might be that she does not want you to be in misery and doesn’t want you to be hurt. Come on! What solution is it, you being tied up in your marriage while your wife enjoys her social life? No matter how much you try to accept it, it will eventually lead to your unhappiness and distress. It is always better to free yourself from the burden. Tell your wife that you prefer a divorce rather than a one-sided marriage.

What should you say to her?

 It is heartbreaking when the love of your life pulls away from you or when she shows less interest in you. Salt on the wound will be she demanding a half-open marriage. Shattered and shaken by her demand you might want to try all possible ways to get her back. You could also have a mixed reaction. You might be confused about what went wrong.  What you should be doing is to bring your senses together and talk to her. Good communication will help you understand your wife’s issue and maybe find reliable solutions to the problems.

If you truly cannot let go of your love, tell her you’ll support her but would also like to bring back the good moments you had with her. Anger and agony should never be your way to deal with it, it will just make her prefer to stay away from you.

Wife wants Half open marriage – Dealing with it or Living with it?

Well! You can try, try and try till you succeed. The choice is all yours, whether you want to stay with your wife or deal with the mammoth bravely. You have the option of letting your wife choose her ways and live with them forever, while you enjoy your share of life. Next is you choose to deal with it, tell your wife how you feel about her decision and what is your stand on it. Try to communicate rather than just talking to her. If nothing works tell her that you need to be free of the marriage with her.

Ultimately Mate! You deserve to be happy, pampered, and celebrated. Do not let the decisions of your wife weigh you down in life. Move out of that comfort zone, explore life and have a relentless journey to revive yourselves.

Riya Mishra