Page 4 - LCT December 2019

What is Polyamory?
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A Look Inside Ethical Non- monogamy | by Helena Domenic
Hello! I am Helena Domenic, and I am an artist, a writer, AND a Life Coach for people who are choosing non-traditional relationship styles. You might wonder what I mean by this, and I’m here today to talk about different relationship styles and clear up misconceptions.
You have probably seen a lot about polyamory in the media through articles, documentaries, and even shows on Showtime like Polyamory: Dating and Married. All of these are depicting a relationship style known as “Consensual Non-Monogamy,” and even with all of this information coming at us from a variety of sources, there are still several misconceptions about what exactly that means.
Full disclosure – my husband and I have been practicing consensual non-monogamy since 2011, and we consider ourselves to be polyamorous. We are entirely devoted to one another, and we both have additional partners with whom we are involved in an emotional and physical level. You may wonder why we do this, or how this even works for us.
Consensual and/or ethical non-monogamy covers any relationship style in which ALL OF THE INVOLVED PARTIES are agreed that they will not be sexually or romantically exclusive to one another. These various styles then fall into categories such as polyamory, swinging, polyfidelity, and even polygamy. So what exactly do each of these relationship categories or styles mean? Of course, there will be those who disagree with me, but on the whole, this article will cover some definitions of what these styles are.
There is a difference between swinging and polyamory. Generally, swinging is a lifestyle usually