When we think about intimate relationships, most of us think first of intimacy between partners or friends. Personal intimacy is a state in which two individuals are truly able to let down their outer layers of defense and protection and allow themselves to let the other see him or her as she truly is while being able to create the space in which her partner feels safe enough to do the same.
Please click the link below to read a article by Suzanne Degges-White, PhD, LPC, LMHC, NCC.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/lifetime-connections/201801/intimacy-begins-within