In this week’s blog series, Imagine Hope is going to discuss Emotional Affairs. It’s a issue we see happening more & more often, and throughout the week, we’ll discuss various aspects of an emotional affair, along with how to heal from one.

How do you know if you’re caught up in an emotional affair? Today we’re going to talk about what an emotional affair looks like. If you find yourself doing any of the following, then you might be involved in an emotional affair. Here are some characteristics:

• sharing information with a member of the opposite sex that you don’t with your own spouse
• looking forward to talking/texting/emailing this person
• convincing yourself or others (friends, family) that this person is “just a friend”
• noticing yourself becoming physically or sexually attracted to this person after some time
• noticing sexual tension between you and this new person, but not necessarily acknowledging it
• keeping this person a “secret” from your spouse, or keeping your conversations  with this person “secret” from your spouse
• believing that this new person “understands” you better than your spouse
• you would be embarrassed if your spouse were to meet this person, or you actively keep them from crossing paths

If any of the above sound familiar,  then you might be involved in an emotional affair. According to MSNBC 50% of all emotional affairs lead to physical affairs. Stay tuned to learn more about emotional affairs, and as we go thru the healing process.

Written by: Tamara Wilhelm MA, LMHC

*Tamara enjoys doing marriage counseling, individual counseling, & couples counseling  at Imagine Hope. We also specialize in family counseling, child & adolescent counseling. Imagine Hope serves the Indianapolis area, including the surrounding areas of Carmel, Noblesville, Zionsville, Westfield & Fishers.