Which one is worse, an emotional or a physical affair?

[Anonymous]

Emotional affair

Physical affair

Both

[Temporal]

I think emotional affairs are too frequent, and everyone has them. Whether they be minuscule or substantial, they still happen to the best of them, without people even realizing it's an emotional affair. I think what's important is that it never breaks the boundary of physicality and that once the person realizes that it is indeed an emotional affair they put a stop to it. Emotions are tricky, and people don't always realize that something has crossed the boundary of an emotional affair. Awareness of one's actions is what is key here.

[DianaWest]

da hell is an emotional affair? that thing actually exists? So, if you find yourself falling in love with someone else while in a relationship, that is an emotional affair? But a person can't help who they fall in love with. as long as they don't get too cozy with the other person, i don't see why emotional would be so bad.

[Dionigi]

Duplicate of physical or emotional cheating, look for that question.
Most answered that that emotional is worse.
I disagree because if the affair is just emotional there's still time to break up before something disgusting could happen.

[Asker]

haven't seen that question and i didn't mean to duplicate it if you're asking.

[Dionigi]

I'm just suggesting you look it up if you want to read more answers.

[Asker]

Ok thanks!

[Curmudgeon]

Obviously a physical one. We are what we do, not whatever fleeting thoughts we may have had from one second to the next.

[Asker]

Emotional affair is when you share deep emotional connection with someone else apart from your spouse.

[Curmudgeon]

Well heck, I have some old friendships, what they jokingly call "bromances" nowadays, that fall into that category.

[Asker]

So you're okay if your current partner share that emotional bond with someone else, of the opposite sex?

[Curmudgeon]

With one guy, I suspect she does. Quid pro quo and all that.

[lumos]

To me, this is like asking me if I'd rather be stabbed in the back or the front. Makes very little difference because ultimately, I'm getting stabbed. And the end result is a breakup no matter what.

[bklynbadboy1]

I agree well said

[Logorithim]

Both are bad, but I think the physical is worse.

[kitty71]

Why not the emotional?

[BluesheepOwl]

I remember reading this somewhere. So typically guys would find a physical affair worse because of the sex in general. He thinks if she's having a physical affair it's assumed she also having an emotional affair too.
For women it's the emotional affair. If her partner is having an emotional affair then he/she is definitely having a physical affair, no doubt about it. But it hurt more to have your partner console in someone else than you and love that other person more than you.

Of course not everyone is one or the other. But for me both are equally bad.

[Pink1996]

In an emotional affair, that persons heart is gone you're just holding onto an empty shell. You can't force people to love you. Its so heartbreaking.
In a physical affair, it feels disgusting. Its difficult to get over the fact that your partner was in bed with someone else hours ago.

[JanetJa]

Physical for sure. Emotional can mean anything. Just because you have a few decent conversations over coffee doesn't mean that you're in love. Grow up. I doubt that men can get to a point in their lives where they have a hot and interesting wife, but sit down to eat a sandwich with an average-looking woman to discuss life and it's deeper meanings. What kind of fucked scenario would lead to that?

[MarcoIsAFailure]

Emotional by far.
You can be okay with your partner having sex with other guys.
Open Relationship, swinging etc.
It's quite natural to be attracted sexually to multiple people.
But it's not natural to actually be in love romantically with multiple people.

To an emotional affair would show, that she does not really love me anymore, which would be the worst thing.

[xellax]

Emotional. Physical cheating can be spur of the moment either under the influence of alcohol, stress or simply sexual urges. I believe I could forgive these indiscretions.

Emotional affairs usually occur over a longer period by which time the cheating party has already checked out of their current relationship. It would be a much bigger blow and harder if not impossible to fix.

[Wally48]

Good points. I voted "physical" because I was assuming it was a sober, conscious decision for a partner to go fuck someone else. But I can see that in the right "party" atmosphere, things can get out of hand without thinking about your SO.

[YingKim]

@xellax I agree :) You said it better than I can. :)

[D_Bone_Steak]

I put both, but I think both go hand in hand. Dudes tend to be motivated my the sex more so than the validation, where some chicks sometimes seek validation and try to avoid the sex part, but usually still end up cheating eventually.

Word to the wise, make sure your chick is self-validating when you're not around to validate her yourself.

[E_xotiic_Kiss]

Emotional because it's not just 1 or 2 times and never see that person again, your literally falling for someone else in the process of cheating! You can't say I forgive you never do it again because in the back of your head and in your heart you know Your heart and soul wants to be with someone else! The hurt from that is unimaginable!

[Mickey9999]

After living through a sexless marriage (even after proposing an open marriage long ago turned down by my late husband) I’ve learned by being in the dating scene again that sex can be strictly JUST physical for both males and females. But cheating is cheating. Sexual or emotional would hurt me.

[CHARismatic110]

Cheating is cheating is cheating and it all sucks. But I'm gonna go ahead and say that if my SO has gotten emotionally attached/connected to someone while they're supposed to be in a relationship with me, I'd be a bit more hurt by that than the act of them physically cheating.

[scotty01]

I’m going to say physical affair. Because you can text someone and say stuff or phone call and say stuff. But actually physically doing it is totally cheating and it’s wrong. To me that happens then you should leave that partner and be with the person your having the physical part with.

[Anonymous]

For most men, if a girl has a physical affair, that's by FAR the bigger betrayal. Interestingly, it seems that more women have a bigger issue of the guy commits an emotional affair, but I still suspect that most women find the physical affair a bigger betrayal.

[Wally48]

Oh for sure physical betrayal is worse for most guys. That's deep seated primal cave man shit. If your girl is willingly being inseminated by a guy without your knowledge and consent, it's a huge rejection. I'm not sure I could take a cheater back. Too damaging for my self esteem.

[Opinion Owner]

@Wally48 I agree 100%. That's automatically disqualifying. Nothing worse.

[Sabretooth]

emotional is a prelude to a Physical affair-which can be corrected before that point. emotional can be completely accidental-more so for a man-we can do it and not even be aware of it... just find ourselves checking out a random girl-though in truth-it means nothing-still, right to do so.

[Sabretooth]

i want to correct myself-initially, it means nothing.

[Sabretooth]

''not right to do''

[slatyb]

No one contracts an STD because their partner had an emotional affair.

[ArrowheadSW]

Both but I'm not real picky about emotional affairs. Sometimes people just have a good friend of the opposite sex and often it doesn't go over into an "emotional affair".

[LifeEqualsLove]

Cheating is cheating. They're equally bad. In one case you didn't act on it, but you probably wish you did and the other you did act on it - which is horrible as well.

I don't know.

[winterfox10]

Emotional. Because an emotional affair means that you have either checked out of the relationship, or that you are so unfulfilled that being emotionally connected with the person your spouse has become is no longer an acceptable option for you.

[tonicandgin]

I meant to vote emotional affair because emotional is what keeps you attatched to someone physical is fleeting

[DizzyDesii]

Majority will say emotional but ill say physical because actions can be controlled... maybe not a reflex but still

[bklynbadboy1]

I couldn't deal with either one their both the same to me

[DizzyDesii]

@bklynbadboy1 but im saying emotional affairs are easier to hide

[bklynbadboy1]

I guess