I was watching season 4 of the show “Billions”, when a newly introduced character brought up the term “maximum recreational depth“. It immediately caught my attention, so I began to do some research. Naturally, Google informed me that this term was also the name of this particular episode, ha.

To provide some context, two characters on the show have been dating for a short time. When something emotionally disruptive happens to the man, the woman picks up on this and asks him for details. The man, almost as if it were a reflex, shuts down her inquiries by repetitively saying he doesn’t want to talk about it.

Almost seamlessly, the woman provides a scuba diving metaphor for this stage in their relationship: “maximum recreational depth.” She, quite eloquently, explains that the reason he isn’t willing to share these emotional details with her is because this would require breaking through a layer of vulnerability; a stage of “depth” that he clearly isn’t comfortable with or ready to have with her. Key point being, with her.

What an AMAZING metaphor to describe the stage in dating or getting to know someone, when you haven’t quite reached that level of openness!

Whether it was myself who was putting up the wall, or running into someone else’s wall, I know I’ve definitely had this experience before. (Sidenote: I love finding words/phrases that describe life’s obscurities!)

Does this resonate with anyone else?

The end!