Have you ever wondered the difference between friends with benefits(FWB) and no strings attached(NSA) kind of relationships? These are some of the most common terms used in the dating world today. And they serve as an indication of how greatly dating has evolved.
According to the dating experts the main difference comes from the titles and not in the whole concept. Both FWB and NSA revolve around casual hookups for sexual and other pseudo relationship benefits except emotional intimacy.
However, when we come to the title concept, we find that FWB are in the first place friends who later gets to be sexually attracted to each other and they end up shagging for fun. On the other hand NSA partners can be complete strangers who just hookup for a one night stand. And most importantly, it just ends there.
From movies and romantic books, we have often seen how FWB starts; it is born out of a platonic kind of friendship and grows into a sexually adventurous type of friendship. Many are times these relationships end with heartbreaks or develop into a romantic relationship. It is commonly said that you cannot have your cake and still eat it.
First, FWB can only be between friends while NSA can be either be between strangers or even friends. Chances for NSA developing into a real relationship are lower compared to those of FWB. This is because as friends, chances are both partners would want to pursue their friendship. And since they have been intimate with each other, then, romance can easily find its way in.
In NSA personal information is usually scanty since no one really cares much about things such as each other's likes and dislikes. In NSA fun, one can even lie about their names since it can be a onetime hookup therefore with such anonymity emotions are kept at bay.
Both rely on some physical attraction but this is more evident in a NSA kind of hookup. This is due to the fact that friendships arent exclusively sparked by physical attractions and therefore cannot be said to take precedent in a FWB type of relationship.
In terms of risks such as heartbreaks and bad ramifications, FWB poses a higher risk. When friendships dies, ramifications such as hatred and defamation may occur mostly when the hurting partner is trying to get back at the other. This is often not the case in NSA; the chances of such ugly breakups are lower as no friendship ties are at stake here.
In FWB everything is handled from a friend point of view. And therefore, a bit of caring for each other is seen in this type of relationship as opposed to NSA. Both partners are cautious toward issues such as unwanted pregnancies and STIs among other sex related mishaps.
Both forms of relationships are fun and getting more popular by the day, however both partners need to be made aware of what they are getting into early enough.
