tigressA Posted September 14, 2010 Share Posted September 14, 2010 We attach this word to "relationship" a lot. But what defines a "serious relationship"? Is it defined by the commitment to exclusivity? Is it defined by the depth of feeling you have for each other? Is it defined by the amount of time you're in it? Is there a minimum amount of time that has to pass before your relationship can be deemed "serious"? Is it defined by the ultimate goal--that you can see yourself marrying this person, that you want to marry this person? Does there have to be an ultimate goal in order for the relationship to be "serious"? Discuss. Link to post Share on other sites
USMCHokie Posted September 14, 2010 Share Posted September 14, 2010 For me, the 'serious' moniker comes when I start to feel like I want to stay with the girl for life...but whether that happens or not is another story... Link to post Share on other sites
BillieD Posted September 14, 2010 Share Posted September 14, 2010 For me "serious relationship" means exclusivity. Link to post Share on other sites
Star Gazer Posted September 14, 2010 Share Posted September 14, 2010 Like Hokie, to me "serious" implies an intent towards lifelong commitment, i.e., you talk about the potential for marriage (even if in only vague terms). Link to post Share on other sites
stellaluna Posted September 14, 2010 Share Posted September 14, 2010 Serious to me means I am ready to hang up my dating profile. Link to post Share on other sites
Author tigressA Posted September 14, 2010 Author Share Posted September 14, 2010 I always thought of it in terms of the ultimate goal--wanting to spend the rest of your life with someone. I never really had that feeling for a guy, so under my own definition I have never been in a serious relationship. Link to post Share on other sites
Stung Posted September 14, 2010 Share Posted September 14, 2010 I have been exclusive with people I enjoyed very much without considering our relationship really serious. I guess for me the delineation is depth of emotion, and intent. Not necessarily intent of marriage, but intent of some real commitment, of exploring a future and working through issues together. Time does also have something to do with it, as I would consider a boyfriend of a couple of years to be usually more serious than a boyfriend of a few months--but of course that's only one dimension of a relationship, and those could have been two stagnant, placeholder years, making them not really serious at all. Link to post Share on other sites
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