The prospect of having casual sex on a whim with none of the frills of a long-term relationship can be pretty tempting. In all honesty, it’s totally a sweet prospect considering the pain that we often have to endure in these committed relationships at times. After all, heartbreaks can be a pretty big bummer, making this option for casual dating, no-strings-attached sex, and fun quite appealing.

What Exactly Defines Casual Dating?

Before we venture any further, understanding the nature of a casual relationship is pretty important. It is generally identified by several distinct features. They are lack of labels and association for fun rather than ‘building’ something together. Similarly, casual relationships are much more defined than random hook-ups or other modern forms of relationships, such as ‘friends with benefits’. The main distinguishing element here is that casual relationships give room for a bit of emotional attachment. In other words, there is a mutual connection through shared interests between the two.

For instance, two people who enjoy BDSM sex but aren’t willing to commit can have a casual relationship. They hookup regularly for some steamy sessions. Similarly, two people who both love the opera can share those experiences together. They can hang out frequently in the theatre but without committing to any dating label.

In contrast, serious relationships come with an ultra-clear label of commitment, an association based on mutual interests, affection, and, of course, intimacy! A lot of people who drifted from committed relationships to chase casual flings were simply lacking spiced-up sex life. They seem to think the prospects of multiple partners would satisfy their sexual appetite!

Polyamorous Behaviour vs. Casual Relationships

Contrary to the common perception of casual relationships, this setup is not at all centered on the desire to hook up with random people. In fact, a good number of couples in a casual relationship are actually monogamous. They sleep only with that one partner, however, they are still free to sleep around if they wish so.

The casual element rather comes from the detachment. Two parties aren’t really dependent on each other in any significant way. The point here is that a couple can still be in a casual relationship yet be monogamous. Funny enough, couples can also be in a serious and committed long-term relationship, yet sleep around with different people… go figure!

Bang and Leave – Is It Sense of Casual Dating?

As amazing as all that banging without any commitment can be, the truth is that casual relationships are not as simple as they may seem or sound. The situation can become pretty complicated despite your best efforts. Human beings are naturally inclined to form attachments with the people they interact with, more so, with the people they’re intimate with!

It means that it can be pretty hard to confine your interaction to ‘meaningless’ hook-ups despite your best efforts. The attachment is not really a conscious act that you do deliberately or can purposefully stop from happening. As the two of you keep up that casual thing, the lines tend to blur, and, more often than not, somebody catches feelings!

Keeping Your Dating Casual – Avoiding Heartbreak Trap!

A lot of people end up hurt with these casual relationships due to a variety of reasons within and beyond their control. As much as you may be eager to indulge in this seemingly win-win arrangement, it’s pretty essential to take precautions. This way, it can help to avoid heartbreaks, psychological whiplash, and complications later on. Here are a few things to consider and observe before jumping in:

• Get on the Same Page

People date or avoid dating for different reasons. With casual relationships, it is critical to actually have a conversation with your partner and establish the whole motive behind it. Say it aloud whether it’s a desire for no-strings sex, a lack of time to commit attention to someone, fear of attachment, etc. From there, you can then evaluate whether or not it’s something you’re willing to involve yourself in.

• Stay in Your Lane

Having established the basis of your relationship, the last thing you should do or expect is to stretch the relationship out of the agreed limits. For instance, if you’re both after steamy casual sex sessions, avoid going on dates together. Forget about movies and eating out with them! As much as it may sound like a great idea, it opens the floor for a lot of misunderstandings and potential heartbreaks in the future.

• Keep Communication Lines Open

We all evolve with time as our needs change. Be sure to stay in touch with your partner verbally rather than keeping things bottled up. If you find yourself getting attached, open up about it. Whichever way it goes, you’ll either stop hurting or transform from casual to long-term dating, which is a win either way!

• Play It Safe

While promiscuity may not be the main feature of casual relationships, the option to sleep around can mean that your partner has other sexual encounters. It easily increases the risk of nasty STIs that may wreak havoc to your health. As such, always play it safe without any exceptions!

Non-Casual Casual Dating – Underlying Irony

The classification of being in a committed relationship is pretty scary for most people as we have already established. However, funny enough, there seems to exist some forms of casual relationships that are essentially committed relationships! To grasp this underlying irony, one needs to first realize that a committed relationship is one where each partner acknowledges the presence and role of the other(s). They could define them as a provider of sexual release, emotional support, etc.

With that in mind, can we, therefore, say that two people are in a casual relationship if they officially acknowledge each other and the role they play in each other’s life? Some couples even go as far as to say ‘we’re being casual, but you can’t sleep with anyone else’. Sounds pretty much like a committed relationship to me. All those little things like emotional support, hanging out, eating, traveling together, etc. amount to a committed relationship with emotional value, even if you don’t recognize it! Check out our blog on making a clean break if you realize that you’ve already transitioned to something serious that you’re not yet ready for.

As we wind up, casual relationships are often for people whose focus is on something more important to them. Of course, hooking up randomly with someone who isn’t really committed to you could be not your thing. Then, you may rather want to find someone who has a similar lifestyle to yours. More often than not, that’s all we need: to find someone who understands our situation and won’t hold it against us when we focus on other things! Find yours today easily wherever you are in the US with Wickedlist!