Wanting love and fearing closeness can exist at the same time, and that contradiction is exactly what makes intimacy issues ...

Most people want love. But what many of us don’t realize is that, deep down, we may also be terrified of it. The fear of intimacy can creep into our relationships in ways we don’t even notice—it can ...

The fear of intimacy can be a great obstacle that prevents your relationship from progressing, from lasting, from being able to create a good bond and from meeting your needs and those of your partner ...

We don't usually think about fear when we imagine building a life with someone. Relationships should bring joy, intimacy, connection. Yet for millions of people around the world, intense phobias ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about relationships, personality, and everyday psychology. Some of us are driven by desperation in love. For others, the ...

Four examples—literary, biographical, autobiographical and contemporary—illustrate the significance of intimacy as a cultural ideal and why, despite our deep longing for it, intimacy remains elusive ...