Photo Credit Mindy Sabiston
EMOTIONAL AVAILABILITY
BY TAMMI PICKLE
What It Really Means in Dating
'm just not
emotionally
available." It's
one of the most common phrases in modern dating, and probably one of the most misunderstood.
Many people assume emotional availability is about how often someone texts, how affectionate they are, or whether they've
been hurt in the past.
While those things can
influence a person's behavior, emotional availability runs much deeper.
At its core, emotional availability is the ability to genuinely connect with another person. To be able to stay open, present, and emotionally engaged without consistently pulling away,
shutting down,
or avoiding
intimacy
when
things
begin to
feel real.
The truth is, someone can seem interested, attentive, charming, and even caring while still being emotionally unavailable. Likewise, someone may genuinely want a relationship but lack the emotional tools necessary to build and sustain a healthy relationship.
So what does emotional availability actually look like? And
how can you recognize
it—both in others and in
yourself?
Let's take a closer look.
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