6 Things You Might Not Have Considered To Be Cheating

“Cheating” means different things to different people. For some, it’s having a sexual relationship outside your primary partnership. For others, it means secretly keeping in touch with an ex or being untruthful about shared finances. With terms like cyber affairs and object affairs making waves on the Internet, it’s understandable that many people are confused about what’s considered to be cheating. If you want to steer clear of inadvertent cheating, avoid the following six forms of disloyalty in your next or current relationship. 

1. Emotional Cheating

This type of cheating involves establishing a close emotional connection with someone other than your partner. While emotional cheating may seem unproblematic since it doesn’t involve physical disloyalty, it can weaken your primary relationship beyond repair. If you’re turning to someone other than your partner to discuss your daily ups and downs of using them to vent about your significant other, you’re engaging in emotional infidelity. This will likely drive a wedge between you and your primary partner and usually ends in physical cheating. 

2. Physical Cheating

Physical disloyalty is what most people think of when they hear the word “cheating” since it’s one of the easiest forms to identify and define. As you might expect, it involves becoming sexually involved with someone other than your primary partner. This includes what is often seen as “innocent” acts of physical intimacy like holding hands and kissing. 

3. Object Cheating

This type of infidelity is rare and difficult to identify. Object cheating occurs when someone develops an obsessive interest in something outside of their relationship. It’s difficult to catch your partner is object cheating and identify when you’re engaging in it yourself, but there are certain telltale signs. If you find yourself spending more time thinking about things like work or social media than your partner, you may be engaging in object cheating. 

4. Cyber cheating 

Exchanging sexual photos, cybersex, and online flirting all fall under the umbrella of cyber cheating. Gone are the days when affairs were reserved for motels and business trips. Now, two-timers can cheat from the comfort of their own homes.

5. Financial Cheating 

Financial infidelity occurs when couples lie to each other about combined finances. It often involves one partner hiding debts or making large expenditures without letting their significant other know. According to a survey by Today.com and SELF magazine, 60% of people think that financial infidelity is as bad as physical cheating. Any sort of lying leads to a break in trust, so it’s best to be transparent with your partner. 

6. Micro-Cheating 

Couples therapist Lindsey Hoskins says that micro-cheating refers to a “set of behaviors that flirts with the line between faithfulness and unfaithfulness.” This can involve anything from flirting with a stranger to becoming a little too friendly with a coworker. While some people find liking an ex’s Instagram posts completely unacceptable, others have no problem with it. Open communication with your significant other can help set your boundaries.

While cheating is common, those who do can face consequences. Check out our articles about the top 10 celebrity cheating scandals or the 10 times reality TV stars were caught cheating for some real-life examples.