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Ex made me feel ashamed of my sexuality

16 replies

HowVeryDareHe26 · 21/06/2026 18:38

I recently came out of a 6 month relationship and it has left me feeling a bit ashamed. He was a bit younger than me (mid 40s) and fairly newly separated after a 5 year marriage that, according to him, was mostly sexless. She was 10 years older than him and apparently has said that she is not interested in ever having sex again. His dating app bio stated that his love language was touch. In the early weeks of the relationship he said he would ideally like sex often. He had several long relationships before his marriage.

Our first sexual experience was pretty bad in that he entered me without a condom after just a bit of kissing and touching my breasts. I was expecting him to touch me intimately before actual penetration so was taken by surprise. I made him stop and he felt really bad and said he had misread my signals. Second time he attempted oral for maybe 30 seconds and perhaps brushed my genitals with his hand for a second. After that I just took charge. Sex did improve a bit but it wasn’t great. I tried to show him how I like to be touched and he stared gabbling about how his ex was always comparing that this touch was too sensitive or that touch was in the wrong place etc. We only got to see each other fortnightly at weekends so I suppose I had the expectation that he would be keen for sex during our limited time together but sometimes he seemed hesitant.

I can imagine it sounds like he just wasn’t that in to me but he had ED in previous relationships and never once had that with me. He said many times that he was consistently having the best sex often his life with me ( I was surprised at this as I didn’t feel the same). He usually struggled to cum from penetration which had been a longstanding issue for him predating me so would have to masterbate to finish. I was very understanding about this.

A couple of months after the relationship ended, we exchanged some messages and he chose to tell me that, whilst I was the most compatible sexual partner he has ever had, he sometimes felt pressure around sex due to the importance he perceived I placed on it. He particularly felt this after a tough work week. He said that most men would love to have a partner as kind, understanding and enthusiastic about sex as me but he struggled with it at time. This was news to me. Not once did he mention it during the relationship. I cannot recall ansi gel time I pressured him
to have sex. In fact, I wanted him to initiate so would usually let him do that. I can recall one single incident in the early days when, having not seen him for 2 weeks, we came home from an evening out and I kissed him and he just seemed passive so I did question if everything was ok. That’s it. His revelation kind of blind sided me. I am a sexual, sensual person but I’m not pushy or coercive. He was keen to cuddle and would go on about how sexy he found me. I should add that, after the second time we slept together, we went in a night out and had a few drinks and he chose to tell me that he had dumped a woman as she had too much pubic hair and that he thought genitals in general were “gross.” That made me feel really uneasy after the disappointment of the first two experiences as I like men who are sensual and love women’s bodies. He did go down on me after I told him it is the main was I cum but I could never fully relax after his comments as felt he was doing it out of obligation.

I’m dating again now and feel a bit scared to show that side of myself after his comments and just don’t know what to make of it all.

OP posts:
HowVeryDareHe26 · 21/06/2026 18:39

Sorry, can’t seem to edit the typos but hopefully you get the gist

OP posts:
LochSunart · 21/06/2026 19:25

I'm a man. He's a fucking idiot.

HowVeryDareHe26 · 21/06/2026 20:11

@LochSunart lol. That made me smile. Just don’t know why he felt the need to tell me how pressured he felt AFTER the relationship ended. I’m not a bloody succubus!

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Namechangeforthe · 21/06/2026 21:05

It sounds like he is feeling inadequate and is trying to make himself feel better by blaming you. You sound completely normal and fine and well rid of him

HowVeryDareHe26 · 21/06/2026 21:44

@Namechangeforthethank you. I don’t think the sex would have ever been enough for me really so I probably am well rid

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Anthonnysimagination · 21/06/2026 23:09

He has no game, unfortunately, it's a him problem, not a you problem. As @Namechangeforthe says, he's deflecting his issues onto you. Head back tits forward, move on x

mnmnddddd · 22/06/2026 08:02

We're all products of our past. If he's been in a relationship where he was routinely told he was getting sex wrong, that's going to have done some damage. It could have made him quite passive and submissive, it could have made him over-compensate and insensitive, or it could had any number of other consequences: who knows what abuse can do to someone else. That's not your fault, but we all have to be mindful of our partners' scars.

I don't think you said who ended this relationship, or why, or why you were back in touch months later? Was one of you was seeking some sort if closure? Conversations like that can easily go badly, especially if one party is unprepared for them - it's easy to ask questions or answer them in less than ideal ways.

It sounds like you weren't going to make a great couple, so you're both better for ending the relationship. Being well rid of him is quite a negative phrase, and may be justified, or it might be indicative of a resentment that won't help you move on.
How you move on is partly a choice and feeling shame because of someone else isn't going to end well. If you're one of the people for whom lots of sex is an important part of a relationship (he apparently wasn't), that's great - you just need to find someone that is great in bed, is compassionate and kind and generous and attractive and is stable both emotionally and financially etc etc etc ... Remember the dating pool gets shallower in middle age and all the fish in that barrel are a bit scared and a bit stuck in their ways (you included), so it's harder to find a partner that we match with. But there are men who are good at sex and communication, and with patience, resilience and luck, you should find someone with whom you match.

mbonfield · 22/06/2026 08:21

That man was a numptie you are well rid OP.

Good luck with your current relationship.

HowVeryDareHe26 · 22/06/2026 09:08

@mnmndddddthank you for your perspective. I don’t think his ex wife was abusive at all… she actually sounds like a really lovely woman. But clearly their sex life was not working. I felt I was very understanding of his sexual issues which is why I’ve felt so hurt that he was secretly feeling pressured the whole time and didn’t tell me. I was also confused that he presented himself as someone who wanted sex “often” in the early days. I suppose I’ll never really know what was going on in his mind. I just remembered that he didn’t even like to say the word “sex” …. he would say “intimacy” instead. And when I refer to him talking about his ex wife’s preferences, this was DURING a moment when I was actually trying to guide his hand so he would know how to touch me.

My own marriage was sexless for years so I suppose this situation has messed with my head a bit.

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HowVeryDareHe26 · 22/06/2026 09:12

@mbonfieldthank you. I’m not seeing anyone at the moment other than my FWB. Just trying a few first dates. I’m late 40s and am aware that imminent menopause might change my attitude towards sex. But for now, it is important to me…. not THE most important part of a relationship but still important.

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DixonD · 22/06/2026 17:10

Hi OP, your experience sounded so similar to one I had. Men (and women!) like that are better off having sex with themselves.

There’s much better out there.

HowVeryDareHe26 · 22/06/2026 17:40

@DixonDI'm sorry to hear you had a similar experience. Was it similar in regards to the immature comments or him/her feeling pressured? Did you go on to find better?

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PaulRevere · 22/06/2026 19:17

I think @mnmnddddd speaks a lot of sense. We all have baggage and we develop our own interpretation of events to make sense of things. Sounds like he's been thinking about your brief relationship and been trying to rationalise it to himself.

I know when I was first with my late boyfriend after my (sexless) marriage ended and I can't quite remember, but he said something that made me feel like I wanted sex too much, and I felt so so awful. It wasn't his fault and we sorted it out, but I was so triggered in the moment.

You two weren't compatible. You knew that at the time it sounds like. Have fun finding the right one 😁

HowVeryDareHe26 · 22/06/2026 20:36

@PaulRevere yes we all have our sensitivities and triggers around sexuality I guess. Just wish he could have talked to me about it.

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PaulRevere · 22/06/2026 22:32

Yeah, that's the ideal, but maybe at the time he just couldn't. It's not great that he's dumping this on you now, when you can't do anything about it, but maybe it's taken him this long to think things through and reach some understanding of his responses.

And I really really get the desire to be able to go back and fix things. Learning to live with the what ifs and if onlys is so difficult x

HowVeryDareHe26 · 23/06/2026 07:47

@PaulRevereyes, learning to live with the what ifs is the worst part for me and I’ve ruminated far too much and blamed myself so much for how things went with him.

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