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Sexless Marriages Support thread

820 replies

Aishabibi · 13/04/2025 13:06

I’ve noticed since coming onto this section that there are a lot of us in sexless marriages. I wonder if having a thread to share experiences, survival strategies, sex toy recommendations, FwB set ups for those who’ve agreed to open things up or anyone that has managed to get things going again.

my situation is nothing from DH for over 3 yrs. he says he’s not interested at all, no urges whatsoever. He agreed I could explore a FwB, which I did find. Before that, lots of failed attempts to get him interested (lingerie, porn, and a growing collection of toys

OP posts:
DDDDDDDDDDDDTFB · 09/06/2025 03:18

Parkrun69 · 08/06/2025 23:11

So your wife hates your sleeping in another bed but refuses to have sex with you , she wants you to sleep in the same bed fully aroused wanting to make love to her but not wanting to engage in any sexual activity.
Ask yourself which part is both wrong and abusive.

This is why I think separate beds help me. Being in the same bed wanting sex but turned down constantly was starting to feel like a punishment. Removing myself from the room makes me feel more in control of the situation, I made the decision to sleep in this room tonight and for that reason I won't be getting sex.

Aishabibi · 10/06/2025 06:18

It is heartbreaking reading all these stories, I’m glad we have a space to support each other. @ThatAquaSnail your story resonated, that feeling of crushing rejection and being close to depression is where I was.

I think lots of people here find it hard to leave a relationship where there’s kids over sex. That’s where I am and it’s hard. Opening things worked for a bit, but I found it impossible to have sex without developing conflicting feelings.

OP posts:
ThatAquaSnail · 10/06/2025 07:58

Thanks Aishabibi, although I feel like this forum is a double edged sword. Its great to know I am not alone but I cant help reading some of the other threads with people asking about toys or "only" having sex 3 days a week and I feel worse again.

When you say opening things, do you mean you spoke to your partner and agreed to look outside? If so, how was that discussion met? What was their response?

NDerbys32 · 13/06/2025 14:54

Guy here - our lives are not completely sexless but not at all frequent and need more, as it's dwindled after menopause here.

This thread is a bit of an eye opener, resonates and I just wanted to recognise the bravery in being so open on a forum.

JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff · 13/06/2025 20:56

@NCdesperation just catching up on this thread and came across your post and it was so similar I had to respond. I was 28 when we met and felt so lucky. Now, I feel trapped - albeit with someone I care about.

CATomas · 14/06/2025 04:58

There ought to be a website for people in sexless marriages. Folks could hook up for recreational sex. The release would be wonderful. No issues. No questions. Each participant gets it out of his or her system and goes on with life.

PTown · 14/06/2025 06:23

CATomas · 14/06/2025 04:58

There ought to be a website for people in sexless marriages. Folks could hook up for recreational sex. The release would be wonderful. No issues. No questions. Each participant gets it out of his or her system and goes on with life.

Are you describing Ashley Madison?

NCForThatForumM · 14/06/2025 06:35

CATomas · 14/06/2025 04:58

There ought to be a website for people in sexless marriages. Folks could hook up for recreational sex. The release would be wonderful. No issues. No questions. Each participant gets it out of his or her system and goes on with life.

I think the ratio of women to men would render it pretty useless. (For the men.)

Britters69 · 14/06/2025 07:42

I had quite a frank discussion with my husband about this, as we have been really open recently. He is trying to change a lot - managing his mental health, being more present with our son, giving up gambling, changing his job so he is with us more often - but he also needs to give some time and attention to our relationship.

I am stuck doing the majority of the work around the house, childcare, the life admin, and even managing his job applications and finances. But this is creating a real sense of inequality that is making me angry and resentful.

Maybe I am asking him to do too much by also addressing the lack of romance and sex in our relationship. But I'm so fed up of having to keep bringing it up (it's always me who raises it), so I told him I had considered looking elsewhere.

He is really anti-cheating so he is adamant the marriage would be over if I did that, however I really wanted him to understand that I was reaching my limit. He has said he will do more but time will tell.

He also has to deal with the fact that he has destroyed my confidence and self-esteem and it will take a while to build that up.

I just miss the carefree attitude I used to have towards sex, and I miss the way it used to make me feel. I don't think we can get it back again, and it makes me feel a lot older than I am.

Just not getting anywhere and feeling so stuck.

AtYourPleasure · 14/06/2025 07:56

CATomas · 14/06/2025 04:58

There ought to be a website for people in sexless marriages. Folks could hook up for recreational sex. The release would be wonderful. No issues. No questions. Each participant gets it out of his or her system and goes on with life.

Sshhhh, don't tell MN but there are people - men and women - on this thread who would be happy to receive a PM saying you're up for it.

Parkrun69 · 14/06/2025 08:12

Who said I haven’t received a few PM ‘s
makes it fun 😜😜😜

ThatDaringEagle · 14/06/2025 10:55

Missj25 · 16/04/2025 13:18

Just wondering , I live in Ireland, well like, & I’m Irish also ..

@ Missj25, Which part of Ireland?

NCForThatForumM · 14/06/2025 10:57

AtYourPleasure · 14/06/2025 07:56

Sshhhh, don't tell MN but there are people - men and women - on this thread who would be happy to receive a PM saying you're up for it.

They're very unlucky people, they keep getting in legal trouble abroad that requires me to wire them money by Western Union. Costing me a fortune to keep them all out of prison.

Missj25 · 14/06/2025 11:01

ThatDaringEagle · 14/06/2025 10:55

@ Missj25, Which part of Ireland?

Kerry , are you Irish ?

ThatAquaSnail · 14/06/2025 11:41

AtYourPleasure · 14/06/2025 07:56

Sshhhh, don't tell MN but there are people - men and women - on this thread who would be happy to receive a PM saying you're up for it.

That would be terrible to receive such a DM...just terrible...

👀

AtYourPleasure · 14/06/2025 13:18

NCForThatForumM · 14/06/2025 10:57

They're very unlucky people, they keep getting in legal trouble abroad that requires me to wire them money by Western Union. Costing me a fortune to keep them all out of prison.

You're their hero!

Of-course... next time one of them messages you, you could always just ignore it.

CATomas · 14/06/2025 13:53

Not Ashely Madison, but I suppose that would work. Something less formal. I went into an adult sex store out of curiosity a while back and I thought they should have a dating club of some sort. It would be local, of course, because the store is.

ps. I inquired of the female employee as to the best sex lotion for hand-jobs. She pointed me to that part of the store and said "enjoy yourself" when I made my purchase.

DixonD · 14/06/2025 14:41

ThatAquaSnail · 14/06/2025 11:41

That would be terrible to receive such a DM...just terrible...

👀

I hope you find some happiness, reading your story made me feel so sad for you.

I’ve been there myself, but it’s very on and off. It’s currently good, but when it’s not, it’s awful.

ThatAquaSnail · 14/06/2025 14:48

DixonD · 14/06/2025 14:41

I hope you find some happiness, reading your story made me feel so sad for you.

I’ve been there myself, but it’s very on and off. It’s currently good, but when it’s not, it’s awful.

Thank you. Its been nice to open up on here, even to strangers. Ive never been able to tell anyone before.

CATomas · 14/06/2025 23:08

Bitters, he makes no sense. He admits things are awful for you, he does not care, it seems. You say you had this discussion, but he seems to not care about your miserable situation. Move on.

Bloozie · 14/06/2025 23:36

My marriage isn't sexless, but our libidos are wildly mismatched and my husband would, I think, give up on sex entirely if he didn't know how much that would bother me. We have sex perhaps once a month.

My husband says he used to have a very healthy libido but it has dwindled as he got older. He's 52. My thoughts on this are that he expects his libido to drive the bus and that he needs to have the raging horn to contemplate having sex, and so doesn't create opportunities to get turned on - kissing, cuddling, intimacy. He links them to sex, so only does them when he's horny - doesn't seem to consider that doing them could MAKE him horny.

There's lots in our relationship that doesn't work really, all around communication.

It really bothers me. He's been to the doctor, had his testosterone checked, everything is 'normal'. He just has a low sex drive. He suffers from depression which doesn't help, but prior to this his drive was the same.

I feel trapped in our marriage. I can't bear the idea of a life without passion, and the lack of physical intimacy means there's no healing balm to soothe the frayed edges of two people living a stressful life. We don't have that mindless connection. We just have domestic drudgery.

I hate bedtime. We turn off the lights and he falls asleep within 3 seconds. And I lie awake for up to an hour, wondering how the fuck I ended up here.

He says he loves me. I don't think love is enough. I love many of my friends. I want to live with the one that I can fuck.

Anyway, I cope by reading spicy romance and masturbating while he snores.

Eric1964 · 15/06/2025 00:30

@Bloozie "... and the lack of physical intimacy means there's no healing balm to soothe the frayed edges of two people living a stressful life."

You couldn't have put that better. My wife and I get on well but if we had a meaningful sex life, she'd unlock Husband V2.0 and our lives would be on a higher and more fulfilling level in all departments. I don't withhold this better version of me, out of spite or for any other reason, but it lies dormant within me, guarding and, out of necessity, repressing my sexual feelings.

AnonAnonmystery · 15/06/2025 08:35

@Bloozie agree with what you say about sex smoothing over life’s stresses and annoyances. Sex has been the one thing that my partner and I have maintained through bereavements, aging parents, mediation for children with ex partner ( him not me). If we have suggested and agreed to sex earlier in the day, it will still go ahead even if we’ve had an arguement. The next day the arguement has evaporated and we continue to be loving with each other. Sex allows us to love each other, even when we don’t like each other 😅

AtYourPleasure · 15/06/2025 09:16

Eric1964 · 15/06/2025 00:30

@Bloozie "... and the lack of physical intimacy means there's no healing balm to soothe the frayed edges of two people living a stressful life."

You couldn't have put that better. My wife and I get on well but if we had a meaningful sex life, she'd unlock Husband V2.0 and our lives would be on a higher and more fulfilling level in all departments. I don't withhold this better version of me, out of spite or for any other reason, but it lies dormant within me, guarding and, out of necessity, repressing my sexual feelings.

Apologies @Eric1964, I can't recall your story and how you came to be in this situation.

How would Husband V2.0 differ from how you are currently?

Eric1964 · 15/06/2025 09:40

@AtYourPleasure : In 2018, I posted a thread, which you're welcome to read if you wish. Ironically, what I didn't realise when I wrote that account was that I was at the beginning - almost to the day - of a seven-year period of no sex whatsoever.

The aftermath of an affair

Husband V2.0: Me but better. Leaving sex aside, the thing our marriage lacks is easy, open, flowing communication, and I know my wife misses that. From early on in our marriage, due to repeated sexual rejection, I had to guard my feelings assiduously. Repress them and, sometimes (and I got better at this over time) divert them. The trouble is, when you repress one set of feelings, inevitably you repress others and, for me, that was my more fun, open side. As well as that, I suppose I've had a kind of low-grade depression for years, and that saps your motivation for many things. Well-motivated husbands get more done! So - Husband V2.0 would make love to his wife in the morning, ensuring she had at least one shuddering orgasm, then leap out of bed and start mending the fence or building a wall or something, whilst his beloved basked in the afterglow.

(Just a quick note about the affair: shit happens. Honestly, it's as simple as that. People make mistakes. If you want to get some insight into their motivation, check out Alain de Botton on YouTube, who deals with these things pretty well. The only thing I will say is that, following the affair, if our sex life had been good, the affair would have been a distant memory far quicker than it was.)

The aftermath of an affair. | Mumsnet

Hello. I'm a bloke around 50, been married for about a decade and a half. This post could be very long, so I'll try to boil it down to the essentia...

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/sex/3173114-The-aftermath-of-an-affair

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