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Relationships

Mumsnet has not checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. If you need help urgently or expert advice, please see our domestic violence webguide and/or relationships webguide. Many Mumsnetters experiencing domestic abuse have found this thread helpful: Listen up, everybody

I don't really like sex but feel like I should do it for my husband

37 replies

3missys · 06/07/2009 10:25

Ok, I really don't know what has happen DD1 is 3.8 years and DD2 is 2.3 years. I am married to my husband for the past 5 years and known him for 10 years and I really don't wish for sex.

The thing is I have never really had a great libido whereas my husband has. I have experimented with lots of things over the years so I'm no prude but to cut straight to the point if my husband and I never had sex again i really don;t think I wouldn't be upset. I am a very emotional person and my husband and I get on well. We always kiss and cuddle but for me that is fine. Every now and again I would love for us to just have foreplay and then leave it as that but off course he wants to have sex which I just can't be bothered with.

I know my husband watches porn which has taken me a time to come to terms with but now I let him watch it (and at times we have watched it together).

I feel sometimes I just have sex just so I can't start the counter again and tick it off the list which upsets me to think like that.

I have tried some libido enhancers which don't do anything and we have time alone on a regular basis so I really don't know what else to do?

sorry for the long winded question but I need your help!

OP posts:
3missys · 06/07/2009 18:08

Do couples actually have lasting loving relationships without intercourse? Does anyone else any experience of mismatched libidos?

OP posts:
expatinscotland · 06/07/2009 18:53

I'm sure people have, 3missys. But when libidos are mismatched it can lead to a lot of unhappiness. Personally, I would find it very difficult to be happy in a married relationship with no sex or very little sex. Don't get me wrong, we have had our swings and roundabouts, but over the long-term very mismatched libidos can lead to major problems and even, at least going by posts on here, the end of some marriages.

expatinscotland · 06/07/2009 19:12

I don't find penetrative sex over-rated myself. Sorry, but I find it brings me closer to someone, it's more intimate.

My mother has two friends whom she's been friends with for over 40 years. Both of these women have a long-term lover each as their husbands have little to no libido and, at the time they began their affairs, divorcing someone for that was unheard of.

But they couldn't live without sex and their husbands were simply unwilling to work to try to get to the heart of why they had such low sex drives.

I feel very sorry for them, tbh. Even when you see them, if you the perceptive sort you can see they carry a great sadness in them.

anonandlikeit · 06/07/2009 19:51

3missys
I love my dh deeply, we've been married a long time have 2 young children, BUT i have no desire to have sex.
TBH my sex drive has always been very low, (i'm in my late 30's now)never seen the attraction of it if i'm honest.
Would happily live the rest of my life in celabicy, I do love physical contact, kisses, cuddles etc. But have never ahd the need or desire for anything more.
My DH has always had a greater libido then me (not hard i know, excuse the pun!) but over the years I think he has learned to go without.
Every so often we do make love but as horrid as it sounds it is his needs i am fulfilling not mine.
I know he watches the odd film & will read a bit of porn, I really don't mind, if he's put up with my lack of sex all these years I really don't think i'm in a position to moan.

Sorry for the waffle, its just that I think you can have a very low sex drive without it meaning anything else.

ABetaDad · 06/07/2009 19:53

expatinscotland - I agree with you that it can lead to a lot of unhappiness. The fact there are are a huge number of threads on MN about it proves that.

I do not think I could live with permanently mismatched libidos. I feel really feel dismayed when I read someone saying that they just do not care and would rather not bother with sex. I always wonder whether they have thought for one second about the other person. It seems incredibly selfish to demand someone stays monogomous and faithful but not care about their sexual needs.

If someone does not want sex, they have a perfect right to say no of course, and on a permanent basis, but if they do they also have to be prepared allow the other person to leave the relationship or at least seek sex outside it. Some couples live happily in celibacy but I suspect most couples could not, as in the examples you cite.

These comments do not apply to the OP - she clearly cares a lot.

expatinscotland · 06/07/2009 19:58

'and on a permanent basis, but if they do they also have to be prepared allow the other person to leave the relationship or at least seek sex outside it.'

I agree with that.

I just always apply it to: what if it were my son or daughter, married to someone who didn't want to have sex with them or couldn't be bothered or refused to even try to determine if there is a cause for their lack of libido? I would feel so aggrieved if this made them unhappy.

In the case of one of my mother's friends, we all think her husband knows she's been seeing this other man, a friend of his. .

In the other, he doesn't know (and her lover was their family doctor (all are now retired)), he still thinks his wife just learned to live without it most of the time or that she's okay with what intimacy they've got. Her lover's wife has no idea, either.

ABetaDad · 06/07/2009 20:05

Interesting insights. I don't think anyone ever learns to live with lack of sex when they have a normal natural sex drive. They just learn to stop asking and then and fall into a unhappy silence or secretly go elsewhere. Very sad.

belledejour · 07/07/2009 13:27

Hi 3Missys. I saw this post the other day and it stuck in my mind so have come back to post today.

Your post could have been written by me 7 or 8 years ago. After I had dd1, I lost all interest in sex. Had been with my husband about 10yrs and living together for about 5. We had a great sex life when we first got together but it dwindled into boring routine as the years passed. By the time I'd had my first child, like you I felt if I never had sex again I wouldn't be missing out. Sex had become a chore and something I'd put off for as long as possible, sometimes months. It worried me and I felt guilty but I pushed the thoughts away and buried them in busy day to day routine.

When trying to get pregnant with dd2 we did have more sex, but after I had a miscarriage I became obsessed with getting pregnant and forced my husband to have sex every other day - ironically we were having lots of sex but it killed any romance or excitement dead as it was so obvious that all i wanted was to be pregnant. And as soon as I was pregnant that was it.

To cut a long story short dh started an affair when our dd2 was 3 months old. I don't want to scare you because this might never happen to you, but what I do want to tell you is that during the 2 yrs we spent trying to save our marriage, I realized that I had been making a big mistake on the sex front.

My analogy is that having sex is like going to the gym - the thought of it is so dreadful and unappealing when you haven't had any exercise for ages, so you put it off and off, make every excuse under the sun but still feel guilty about it underneath.

Then, when you do start going to the gym and get into a routine, it's great and becomes second nature - in fact, sometimes you find yourself wanting to do it even more. For me, sex was the same. Once I forced myself to get to grips with the issue and start having regular sex with my husband it wasn't an issue any more and it became second nature. I would say I became much more sexualized the more sex I had and ? shock horror - even enjoyed it.

I honestly believe you cannot have a happy unclouded relationship without sex if one party wants and needs it. And sex reaps huge rewards in terms of intimacy, trust, closeness etc. And I think if your dh is a great husband and a good provider and you want your marriage to endure, you need to be having some sex with him!

For what it's worth, I would suggest that you make a deal with yourself or your husband that you will have sex a certain number of times a week or month. Sounds so clinical but it worked for a friend of mine. Sex, or the lack of it, became such an issue in her marriage that she & her husband were arguing frequently so she agreed to have sex 3 times (I know!) a week but not at any other time, and he couldn't nag or harass her once the 3 times were up. Strangely it ended up all being rather erotic and also she loved her nights off when she'd be in bed in pjs & bedsocks with a cup of tea at 8pm knowing he wouldn't be able to start groping her while she had her nose in a paperback.

Perhaps you could even tell your husband that you'll have regular sex with him if he stops viewing porn? But at the moment the no sex thing sounds like the elephant in the room and it's obviously affecting how you feel and your marriage.

This may not be what you want to hear but I really hope this helps...

3missys · 07/07/2009 19:39

belladejour & anonandilikeit thank you so much for your posts..... it feels so much better to have people understanding me.... & expatinscotland your advice was taken on board...

Well.... I spoke to my husband after gaining courage from you lot and although he initially became defensive we have agreed to have sex one night a week (which we are both happy about) and perhaps just foreplay another night of the week. He admits he is watching to much porn and will try to reduce it although I accept he will always use it. I feel a lot better although the proof will be when we actually put the plan in action.

I know it seem very regimented but I think it will need this to actually get our sex life back on track.

Thank you all!!!

OP posts:
Thunderbird4 · 07/07/2009 20:28

"I honestly believe you cannot have a happy unclouded relationship without sex if one party wants and needs it. And sex reaps huge rewards in terms of intimacy, trust, closeness etc. And I think if your dh is a great husband and a good provider and you want your marriage to endure, you need to be having some sex with him!"

Belledejour, thanks. From a male point of view i'm reassured by your post. I've been in a sexless relationship for years and can (just) live with that. To me, the lack of any physical intimacy just causes resentment and anger.
Arguably, we all need to feel loved and physical intimacy (sex or not) is a key part of that. The lack of sex in a relationship won't break a marriage, but the feelings it generates can.

3missys · 08/07/2009 11:38

"The lack of sex in a relationship won't break a marriage, but the feelings it generates can" quote by thuinderbird4

I think this is quite true and this is why I wanted to sort this out as I don't want our marriage to head that way, we had our "foreplay" night last night and it actually felt a lot better after having talked to him the night before. Yes I know sex should be spontaneous perhaps but I feel it is important to actually be doing it at certain times rather than not doing it at all now.

OP posts:
Thunderbird4 · 12/07/2009 17:29

3missys,
communication and compromise are key on both sides. I'm glad to hear that you're maintaining the physical side. Communication and emotional wellbeing will improve. This can only benefit the relationship -Good luck

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