Emily Chan
Casual relationships are extremely common these days. It seems that there’s always a new name popping up for something or another every single day. One term that you’ve probably heard in recent years is “situationship.”
A situationship is a romantic relationship between two people without a clear definition or commitment. It can help you get to know someone without feeling pressured to put a label on your relationship and launch into something serious too quickly.
However, this dynamic usually can only last so long before one party “catches feelings” and wants to commit while the other person is happy with the way things currently are.
At that point, the situationship no longer feels free of expectations. Once the emotions kick in, being in a situationship can be stressful.
Are you stuck in a situationship that’s no longer making you happy? TikToker Nick Viall (@nickviall) has some advice for how to get yourself out of that bind and turn your situationship into a full-fledged relationship.
“All you got to do to get out of a situationship is just to respect someone’s boundary–that boundary being them saying they’re not looking for a relationship right now, which is a boundary,” said Nick.
Respecting someone else’s boundaries helps you respect yourself and allows you to get your power back. Nick states that you should not continue trying to show your situationship how great of a boyfriend or girlfriend you could be.
It never works, and all they see is your willingness to hang out with them whenever it’s convenient for them. By taking away those boyfriend/girlfriend activities like hand-holding, cuddling, and sleepovers, you’re reminding them of the boundaries they set for themselves.
If they happen to want to change that boundary after you stop behaving like a boyfriend/girlfriend, then you have successfully shifted away from your situationship and into a relationship. And if that doesn’t get them to commit, it may be time to throw in the towel and end things.
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