[Aramgutang]

I concede that experiences you share with partners or close family are near-equivalents of having those experiences yourself, even when you're just the "passenger" on their journey.

[amirmc]

I’d argue it’s not the same. It certainly gives you a very close and stark window into what it’s like, but it doesn’t compare to the lived experience.

[Aramgutang]

Agree, which is why I said "near-equivalent".

For example if your partner has a chronic illness, you can never say you felt their pain, but you can say you know what it's like to live with it. You felt the impact of the illness on your shared life, and you shared the emotions it caused, which are lessons that no amount of reading, listening, or watching can instill in you.

I guess what I'm saying is that it's somewhere between being a first-hand and second-hand experience, because of the notion of a "shared life".