is sex that important...

[gobbymare]

Hi everyone,

I am feeling like i want to end my 2 year relationship due to the fact we have very missmatched sex drives and its really impacting on how i feel about the man i really thought i would spend the rest of my life with.

I am the one who is wanting sex on a regular basis well i say regular, that being at least once a fortnight, but its just not happening its been 6 weeks again and i feel resentment towards him i am snapping at him for it, we have talked many times about how much a sexual relationship is important to me, and he says he understands and i think finally he understands then we wait this long again.

I tried talking to him about it, tried turning him on and making all the moves, but stopped doing that since he has fallen asleep sometimes, its denting my confidence.

We were watching a tv program last week about sleep disorders and i think he has sleep apnea which is obviously going to impact on how "frisky" he is but isnt willing to go to doctors until after our holiday in may, incase he has got it because he is scared they take his driving licence off him and i am scared to drive in america.

There is more i could say but it would end up looking like a yellow pages, but i feel like i live with my best mate, and the thought of us not being together would really be unthinkable but i find myself thinking about it quite a bit lately and i think i must be stupid to want to end a relationship where mostly its really loving and he seems to be a really good man over lack of sex ?

[Toadinthehole]

What Apocalypto said.

Or the OP can compromise.

Or alternatively the OP could ditch otherwise entirely satisfactory partner and find womanising bad-boy someone more interested in sex

[JudyPee]

MrsMushroom is spot on. Is sex important? Yes of course, if its important to at least one of you. Life is short. Don't end up like I did at 40 with a DH who resented me for 'withholding' for years with no good reason :-(

[Helltotheno]

Square peg, round hole OP if you'll excuse the pun. In answer to your question, sex is that important to some people, not to others. It's also important in some relationships and not in others. I know quite a few happy couples who have very little sex. You've asked the wrong question really. It doesn't matter how many have come on here saying how important sex is to them, if it's important to you and not to your DP, then you're incompatible sexually. If he's 40, what do you really expect in the future? Realistically he's unlikely to change.

If you know about this now and are not happy about it, I'd strongly advise you against staying together.

[Magicmayhem]

for me I like the intimacy that goes with making love, the closeness and love I feel for my partner is immence... could you find that intimacy without making love?
does he ever mastubate gobbymare?

[Apocalypto]

He'd be perfect for the OP if only he'd change.

Oh.

[MrsMushroom]

Panicking exactly...what IS he meant to do? Perhaps if he were overweight, or drank a lot then he could address that as both can affect sex drive...

[MrsMushroom]

I disagree that sex is a gift it's nothing of the sort. Sex is a function which exists ideally in a loving relationship as part of a mutual need. It's not sacred either.

It's a bodily function which can be amazing when it's in a loving relationship....when people start calling it a gift, that's dangerous territory because it suggests that it should be given whether the giver wants it or not. Which is very wrong of course.

[PanickingIdiot]

I agree it's a compatibility issue and I don't think it is likely to change.

People in the position of the OP's partner are often accused of being selfish or refusing to address the problem or "do anything to change" it etc. but, quite frankly, there's no cure for two people having incompatible sex drives. What is he supposed to do to change? There are several similar threads around all the time, from both men and women, some of whom have tried everything from counselling to viagra to seeing their GP and trying a number of dubious remedies, and nobody has ever come back with a solution to having a low sex drive, because it isn't, medically speaking, an illness. It's not even really a problem except from the point of view of the partner who has a different sex drive.

The only thing that really works is therefore to find a partner with more matching needs.

It sucks. But two years into the relationship it's not too late to cut your losses. Sorry.

[Apocalypto]

A man who's pushing 40 doesn't need counselling to understand why he's losing interest in sex, phoenix.

[phoenixrose314]

Yes, sex is important. Is one of the defining factors of a marriage or partnership that sets it apart from all the other friends and close mates in your life. It is a gift you should only be giving to that one person... something sacred and special and unique between the pair of you.

I have a higher sex drive than my husband, though it's gone a wee bit awry since getting preggers, but we've talked a lot about how important it is to keep our sex life alive and have tried new things to keep it going (nothing freaky, just different ways of having sex, mutually masturbating, that kind of thing).

Yes, you should be upset about this, but he must have his reasons. Maybe suggest counselling, if he's unwilling to analyse his feelings.

[Apocalypto]

If he's 39, he's 15 to 20 years past his sexual peak. If you're about the same age, then you're at yours, more or less.

He probably feels the same way about sex as I do about deafening smoky clubs: been there, done that, 20 years ago, and it's no longer my idea of fun.

Once every six weeks feels within the range of normal. The low end to be sure, but still within the range.

From his point of view, you're demanding more sex than he wants. I don't think anyone in a relationship is automatically entitled to this. You can ask, but you have to accept the answer, you can't insist any more than he could insist on more from you.

Don't assume that if you keep pestering him he will change his answer. It may be less hassle for him to change you.

[SolidGoldYESBROKEMYSPACEBAR]

Some people are really just not very interested in sex, and it sounds like he's one of them. It's neither wrong to have little or no interest, nor wrong to like it very much and want lots of it.
Your partner is the one who is being selfish here as he is basically fobbing you off and refusing to address the problem - he's content with the relationship as it is, and hopes that if he stalls long enough you will stop moaning and just put up with it.
Sorry but it's not going to improve because, for whatever reason, he doesn't want to make the effort to improve it. So you can either decide to accept things the way they are, bin him and look for someone else - or consider the possibility of having a more open relationship.

[CogitOCrapNotMoreSprouts]

Compatibility is very important and sex is just one of the many things that make you compatible or incompatible. IME the little idiosyncracies that are a tolerable minor irritation in the early days of a relationship do not improve over time, they just get worse. It's a mistake to hope someone will change and love does not - contrary to popular opinion - conquer all. If you're happy with what sounds like a fantastic companion and nothing more that's fine. But if you really want an affectionate, tactile lover as well as a fantastic companion, this man will probably never fit the bill.

[SisterCarla]

I come from a Christian background and was told that an active sex life with one's husband is the mortar which binds together the building blocks of all marriages, without it the marriage will fail. This can also be said for non-married relationships.

Yes, sex is that important.

[gobbymare]

I took it as he would do anything to keep me with him even if it meant an open relationship (because he obviously knew/knows how important sex is/was) this was around the time he had erectile issues.
It was like he saw it as a souloution to his "problem".

No the way i am feeling right now i cannot accept it.

[pregnantpause]

you said earlier that its like living with a friend- by suggesting an open relationship that's exactly what it is to him and exactly what he wants- a friend if he won't change that, can you accept that?

[gobbymare]

Exactly raskolnikov nor can i even with outside help, i suppose i have to think long and hard how much i am willing to put up with.

[raskolnikov]

I can't see how you can sort this out without outside help - GP or counselling etc. You could try self-help books but if he's sticking his head in the sand and suggesting an open relationship, he's saying he's not willing to work on it effectively, isn't he? I'm afraid I couldn't live with that, you're only 2 years in - 20 years of unhappiness, frustration, resentment etc ahead of you - are you sure you're prepared to do that?

[gobbymare]

Sorry voiceofreason, when i say "first love" i mean that has been his one and only relationship and the fact he slept with 1 other person in his whole life he is 39, i do not doubt for one minute that we love each other.

[gobbymare]

No chance would he do that he just isn't a confident man he struggles to talk to me about it never mind his female GP.

I too wouldn't feel comfortable doing that tbh it's like public humiliation and at our ages should be able to sort it if only he would address the situation.

[VoiceofUnreason]

I left my ex-partner after 5 years without sex. It was awful. She was happy with things that way, I wasn't. Can't believe I stuck it out that long but in the end, love wasn't enough.

I honestly don't think it will improve, OP, but what concerns me more is that you say his ex-wife was his "only love". Why would you marry someone who doesn't love you????

[raskolnikov]

Can you both go together and have the conversation with the GP? Not easy I know, but they must hear it all the time and see what he/she recommends?

[gobbymare]

They changed him medication and he no longer has the erectile problems. I don't think he mentioned the lack of wanting sex to them even tho when I look back it was a problem back then too.

[raskolnikov]

What did the doctor recommend?

[raskolnikov]

Cross-posted...