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- Intellectual
Intimacy In Marriage
- By Barrington H. Brennen,
October 27, 2004, 2021
 Are
you and your spouse intellectually intimate? First of all what is intimacy?
Intimacy in marriage is often misunderstood and most times limited to what
couples do in the privacy of their bedrooms.
Intimacy is both intensely private and public.
If intimacy in your marriage is limited to the four wall of your
bedroom, then as a couple you are not totally intimate.
I have observed that many Bahamians are not totally intimate.
They might be sexually active, but an intense level of intimacy is
seriously lacking.
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DEFINITION
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Intimacy
is closeness in a relationship gained by revealing one’s true self to
another. It is sharing
completely the intellectual, spiritual, emotional, or sexual facets of
your life that you should share only with your spouse.
As stated earlier, couples are not only married in the privacy of
their homes. Their marriage extends far beyond the walls of their marital
domain. It is a public
affair, where the intellectual, spiritual, and emotional treatment of each
other causes others to say: "They are really close;" "What
a loving couple!" "They are truly partners,” and other similar
phrases. When intimacy
is limited to sexual contact, then the couple is extremely vulnerable to
affairs and discontentment.
Haven't
you noticed in your church married couples that never sit together? They do
not look angry or publicly disrespect each other with unkind words, but they
are never seen together for any length of time. Their closeness is limited to
seating in the front seat of the car.
Haven't you heard spouses calling their partners by their titles and
full names and never by their first names alone?
One day I was talking to a lady outside a church.
In the midst of the conversation, she said: "Pastor Roberts and
I." At first, I did
not know she was referring to her husband.
Then I realized from the rest of the conversation that she was Mrs.
Roberts, the pastor’s spouse.
She could have said "my husband and I," or used his first
name. This is a sign of a lack of
spiritual intimacy—oneness in marriage.
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INTELLECTUAL
INTIMACY
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In
marriage, spiritual, intellectual, emotional, and physical intimacy should
work harmoniously. In a previous article, I shared about spiritual intimacy.
In this one, I focus on intellectual intimacy.
How do you know when you are intellectually intimate?
Psychologist Laura Dawn Lewis in the book, “Eight Stages of
Intimacy,” shares some ways of knowing whether you are
intellectually intimate. You and your partner have solid intellectual intimacy
if you can answer ”Yes” to all of these situations:
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Both you and your
partner know what each of you fear and both make an effort to keep each
other from those situations and stimuli.
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Opinions,
even those you don't agree on, can be stated, argued and acknowledged
without fear of ridicule, abandonment, or abuse.
This is especially true for such heated issues as abortion,
politics, and sexuality about which you may strongly disagree.
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Without
realizing it, you and your partner often mirror each other's actions,
gestures and speaking style.
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You
know what your partner's life goals, hopes, and dreams are.
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EMOTIONAL
INTIMACY
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Many
couples never make it to emotional intimacy because it is in emotional
intimacy you must accept the person for who he or she is without
reservation, with flaws, irrationality, and all. At this level, you feel
comfortable sharing yourself without fear of repercussions.
Dear
husband and wife, are you truly an intimate couple?
Are you one with your spouse? Do
family members and friends see you as an intimate couple?
If your answer is no to any or all of these questions, then you need to
find ways of getting truly intimate. If your intimacy is limited to just
having sex, then your marriage is sick.
Some may need to get professional counseling to find out what personal
issues prevent total intimacy. Others
may find help by reading a self-help book or attending a seminar.
SEE SPIRITUAL
INTIMACY
Barrington
H. Brennen is a marriage and family therapist.
Send your questions or comments to P.O. Box N-896, Nassau, Bahamas.
Or call 242-323 8772, or email question@soencouragement.org
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