You are not in an open relationship if you are the only one who knows about it; you just suck.

As relationships evolve and change into being a variety of things, we at The Daily Eastern News believe in being honest with yourself and your partner(s) about what you are doing.

If what you are doing is telling your partner what you are doing (and who) you are doing outside of the two of you and they are OK with it, then you are in an open relationship.

If what you are doing is going behind your partner’s back and they are unaware of what is going on between you and a third party, you are cheating.

According to Taylor and Francis Online, one in five participants in a study reported engaging in consensual nonmonogamy at one point in their lifetime, and the results remained constant age, education level, income, religion, region, political affiliation and race, but it varied with individuals’ gender and sexual orientation.

With statistics showing consensual non-monogamous relationships being common comes the responsibility of making sure that what you think is your open relationship is what your partner thinks your relationship is.

We at The Daily Eastern News encourage people to feel confident to do what they want within their relationships but to also keep other factors in mind while doing it.

Obviously, make sure your partner is aware that the two of you are not just the two of you, meaning they are aware that your relationship is fluid and not only between the two of you.

Also, make sure you and your partner get tested frequently for sexually transmitted infections and sexually transmitted diseases to ensure both of your physical health.

However, physical health isn’t the only important thing to keep in mind. Talk to your partner regularly about how they feel about the relationship and encourage them to be open about their feelings on it. Make sure you feel the same confidence to talk to your partner as well.

At the end of the day, how you chose to be in a relationship is up to you, but make sure it’s mutually beneficial and that there is a common understanding of what the relationship is.