A woman has sparked debate about hygiene within intimate relationships after complaining her boyfriend won’t kiss her when she’s sick.
The girlfriend, believed to be from the US, explained on Reddit that she recently had a cold but her boyfriend would only hug her from behind as he didn’t want to catch her germs.
Do you kiss your partner when they’re sick?
She asked if others found this ‘normal’ and said that in past relationships, she would still be intimate with her partner while feeling ill.
Lots of people responded to her question with their opinions – although a few people branded the girlfriend ‘ridiculous’ and said it was perfectly reasonable for her boyfriend not to want to get sick.
The post read: ‘I recently got a bad cold and my boyfriend hasn’t done anything physical with me other than a hug from behind.
He said he doesn’t want to get sick and doesn’t know what I expect of him. Is this normal?
‘With any of my past relationships, despite them being sick we would still kiss and cuddle so that’s just what I’m used to. What do normal people do?’
Can kissing make you really sick?
People were confused by the woman’s question with the majority saying that ‘normal people’ don’t intentionally go out of their way to get sick.
One person said: ‘Kissing when sick is a definite no. Me and my fiancée don’t kiss when either of us are sick or feeling bad. It’s not about lack of affection it’s about respect for each other and not wanting to get each other sick.’
Another said: ‘I mean I’d definitely not kiss them on the mouth at that point. And no, it’s not abnormal to keep your distance from someone who is sick. I thought we all learned this over the past few years.
‘The bottom line, really, is that this is about personal boundaries.’
Someone else wrote: ‘That seems normal to me. It’s normal to not want to get sick. My husband and I tend to keep our distance when the other is sick. ‘
