When it comes to the philosophy of non-monogamy, there can be a lot of questions: Is it polyamory or an open relationship? Do we have to tell each other about other partners? Is it a relationship or just sex?
Today’s episode is all about intimacy and non-monogamy and how people connect and relate to each other in that world, with lots of nuggets that apply to ALL relationships, whether monogamous or not. In today’s episode, I’m breaking this all down with Marcia Baczynski (aka Marcia B.)
Do you geek out on consent, communication, intimacy, how we relate to each other and connect, and why we engage in romantic and sexual relationships in the first place? You’re not going to want to miss this episode!
In episode 403 of the Embodied Podcast we discuss:
- [5:48] The difference between non-monogamy and polyamory
- [10:28] Important and relevant things to communicate with your partner(s), particularly when you’re in a non-monogamous relationship (and why the complexity of communication grows exponentially—not linearly—in non-monogamous relationships)
- [12:50] Ethical non-monogamy vs consensual non-monogamy: what’s the difference and do they mean the same thing? (And Marcia’s preferred term here) How do you determine if one non-monogamous relationship is ethical or not?
- [32:17] Our best tips for living the lifestyle that works the best for YOU (and one really important thing to keep in mind when navigating non-monogamy)
- [44:08] TWO things that are so important to pay attention to when it comes to your relationships and what to hone in on so that you can get your desires met more often
Resources mentioned by Elizabeth in episode 403 “Intimacy in Non-monogamy With Marcia Baczynski”:
- Episode 399: My Sacred Slut Summer
- Buy Marcia’s book, Creating Consent Culture: A Handbook for Educators
- Learn more about Cuddle Parties
- Download Marcia’s free Field Guide to Consent
- Learn more about Marcia and her work at her website.
- Take her upcoming course, Not Needy (starting October 26, 2022)
- Come join me for my October workshop!
- Sign up for my Open Community Embodiment Class on Nov 11, 2022!
Quotes from this Week’s Episode of the Embodied Podcast:
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“[When it comes to non-monogamy] it’s not Pokémon. You don’t have to catch them all. You don’t have to be out doing all the things. You can just have a chill life or have periods of monogamy or periods of celibacy and still be exploring or orienting or being curious about any of these different forms of non-monogamy. And you can move in and out of them in the same relationship.” – Marcia
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“A friend/mentor recently said to me [as a joke], ‘You gotta be careful. Because a lot of people want to spend 1 hour a week fucking somebody else and 15 hours a week talking about it.’” – Elizabeth
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“[When speaking about ethical vs non-ethical non-monogamy], I’m like, well…whose ethics are at play? Because there are a lot of ethical codes. And maybe I actually think that this ethical code and that ethical code are both perfectly good, [but] neither of them are mine.” – Marcia
How was this episode for you?
Was this episode helpful for you today? I’d love to know what quote or lesson touched your soul. Let me know in the comments below OR share the episode on Instagram, tag me your stories @elizabethdialto, or send me a DM!
About the Embodied Podcast with Elizabeth DiAlto
Since 2013 I’ve been developing a body of work that helps women embody self-love, healing, and wholeness. We do this by focusing on the four levels of consciousness – physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual.
In practical terms, this looks like exploring tools and practices to help you tune into the deep wisdom of the body and the knowing of the heart, which I believe are gateways to our souls. Then we cultivate a new relationship with our minds that allows the mind to serve this wisdom and knowledge and soul connection, rather than override it, which is what many of us were taught.
If you’ve been doing self-help or spiritual development work for a while, these are the types of foundational things that often people overlook in pursuit of fancier concepts that often aren’t practical or sustainable. Here, we will focus on building these strong foundations so you can honestly and thoroughly embody self-love. If you’re feeling it, subscribe to the show, and leave us a review wherever you listen from. You can also keep up with show updates and community discussion on Instagram here.