It isn’t healthy for two people to spend every waking moment together when they’re in a relationship. That said, either party going out to bars with friends is a formula for disaster. If you want to spend time with friends don’t do things that involve unfamiliar members of the other sex unless you’re having a tooth extracted.. What I mean by unfamiliar members of the opposite or, if you’re gay, unfamiliar same sex people that your partner knows nothing about. For instance, if you’re a guy, it isn’t O.K. to meet one of your female coworkers for lunch or anything else on a non-work day unless you’ve made a point to introduce that person to your partner first. It doesn’t have to be just before lunch and then telling your partner to get lost. It can be any time but it has to happen so your partner doesn’t feel threatened. No one in a relationship wants to imagine their partner out with an unfamiliar member of the opposite or same sex, depending on sexual preference, on a day off. It only takes a minute to arrange to introduce your partner to your friend and then it shouldn’t feel threatening to your partner. The exception being anything in bars. Alcohol lowers inhibitions and, when drinking, it’s a good idea to have the person you love with you. Yes, there are exceptions. It’s O.K. for a woman to have lunch in a bar with her father and anything else of that nature.

Men and women do need hobbies and time away from each other. Some hobbies are golf, fishing, photography, hiking, knitting, can be shopping and so on. When two people don’t have any breathing space away from each other the relationship stagnates and often people feel trapped, which causes arguments and all kind of uproar.

Do take some time away from each other but be considerate about what type of time you’re taking and please make sure you’ve given your partner some quality time before going off to enjoy a friend or engaging in a solitary experience.