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How To Be Fair To Hubby Coping With Libido

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In answer to another post you made @Finchlet ......no it is not a normal part of a relationship to expect sex on a plate, and demand it.

This is so wrong, it is neither love nor respectful.

Genuine true searing love, as you understand it, shows in different ways from what you are experiencing....

Been there, believed it.....until I worked on myself and saw the reality. Sometimes our pasts cloud our perceptions of what is good, and bad.
 
I find this topic triggering as I have been on your hubby's perspective and the fustration level lead me to leave. I've been in sexless relationships and they work best for me when there is a practical reason for some arrangement. The best way to be fair is to focus on hubby's wants and needs on a communication level. Focus more on what you can do and not what you can't. I am all for spontaneous sexplay but it this case, a structured practice works best. Set up an hour or even start with 15 minutes where the attention is on him. It can be playful or sexual or whatever you agree to but it should be consistent increasing the pleasure very slowly and doing everything in slow motion. I do not think it is in any way healthy for hubby to experience the rejection you need to give if he feels true genuine love and passion. Sexual rejection has a way of making us want it even more and a very painful cycle of sexual addiction to that person can easily evolve. You seem to really care about him so practice tiny steps till you find a compromise. The challenge is in your very valid and opposite needs.
 
I am sorry you are going through that. It's terrible and complex with no simple answer. I'll share my approach to a similar situation. Maybe something in there will help.

My husband sometimes says things that he is feeling in the moment but doesn't necessarily mean in the big scheme of things. So I wonder if that is how your husband really feels all of the time. I mean obviously, it's not an ideal situation for him to not have sex. I can see how he could feel like he does not have the relationship he wanted. He is also experiencing a loss/grief because he probably did not anticipate having a sexless marriage. Regardless, he needs to seek his own therapy because its very stressful to have a partner with PTSD. It's not your job to heal his pain. It's HIS job and he needs to seek the help he needs.

I personally refuse to purposely do anything that causes me to disassociate unless I'm doing it as a form of exposure therapy, have a certain comfort level with it or I think it will benefit my healing. My perspective is that it is my husband's job to make sure his sexual needs are met. He can take care of things on his own. We have a good relationship otherwise and I believe him when he says he has no interest in cheating or ending the relationship.

We have an understanding that I am the one in control and I am the one to initiate any physical contact. I need this arrangement to feel safe. Since we have had this arrangement, my anxiety level has decreased dramatically and my sleep has improved.

Our plan was/is to do the exercises in a book by Wendy Maltz: Dead Link Removed. The problem became that when I become triggered, he gets very stressed and sometimes takes it out on me and is unable to be supportive due to his own stress. If I am going to be physical, I need to be able to trust and feel safe. Therefore, he has finally realized that he needs to go to therapy to learn basic coping and stress management techniques. So for right now, I don't do anything I don't want to do unless I personally want to do it for my own benefit. Eventually, I will have us do the sexual healing exercises in the book or something similar. But I need him to be able to be sensitive if I get triggered.

My own healing and well-being is my top priority. I'm not saying I get everything I want. However, I have a right to basic human needs like a feeling of personal safety and I will no longer compromise on that. Sex is a basic human need too, but I need to focus on my fundamental needs first. It's like putting the oxygen mask on yourself first before trying to help someone else.

I used to disassociate in order to perform sexually. Once my condition got worse, to the point that my health was plummeting I realized I can't sustain that. I need to take care of me.
 
I am sorry you are going through that. It's terrible and complex with no simple answer.

Sweet_E what a lovely and thoughtful response. I wish I could like it more than just once. I have always been able to separate sex from feelings. I fell deeply in love and that is when desire can drive us insane. I chose my sanity but the desire lingers...fingers and fantasy cannot replace the real person. The movie "La La Land" describes the dynamics well imo.
 
He does care and is truly the most understanding human bean I know but when I met him 16 months ago I put up a front and just took it (sex) but its been months of just the odd disassociated blow job when he gets desperate and it is getting worse not better all I want to do is be enough for him but I can't even satisfy this basic need of his.

I think this is a big part of the problem. If you start of by putting up a front of having sex and then stop it's going to cause the problems you're having. If the issue were discussed on the front end and treated sex like you truly felt about it (nauseating) he would be in a much better position to deal with it. As it stands the rejection is more personal.
 
Sex disgusts me. I hate the very thought of it. Seeing it in a movie or on TV drives me into rage then depression. Do women understand that 90% of a man's value is based on pleasing a woman? Not just sexually but in alot of ways. It may not just be he is horney. Think outside the box for a second. I'm not being condescending but serious. A man's sexuality is a physical drive not mental. Even if we suppress it out body will need it to function properly. Many problems can occur from suppression especially mentally. Don't do what you don't want to do but be aware of the big picture.
 
@Fadeaway,
Your question may be better suited for the op. When she said "but when I met him 16 months ago I put up a front and just took it (sex) but its been months of just the odd disassociated blow job when he gets desperate" I took that to mean she was far more sexual in the beginning of the relationship. Front was her word and not mine. My sexual experience is limited to 8 partners. My preference is a relationship vs 1 night stands or just having sex a few times with 1 person. 4 of my partners were long term relationships (over 2 years with 17 being with my wife). In all of my long term relationships the sex is hot and heavy for a year or so in the beginning and then it tapers down to the norm. I've never had a partner with a higher libido than me but in all 4 of my relationships my partners equaled me in the beginning. I think the proper term is limerence but I used to refer to it as the rabbit phase although the honeymoon phase seems to be what most call it. Once the honeymoon is over you find out very quickly where you really stand as far as sexual compatibility. That's probably what is going on here. I'm sure there is an evolutionary reason for it to create a bond and procreate. What I've noticed is many men and some women feel like they were duped into what things would be like because of how they were in the beginning of a relationship. It took life experience for me to figure out what was actually going on. Based on what the op said she put her issues with sex aside (the front) in the beginning and reverted to her norm. I don't know when her husband found out about her abuse. My wife told me about her rape while we were still in our honeymoon phase. Based on when I found out I had no idea what the norm would become once the newness wore off. When things did settle down due to life, kids etc... our sex life took a nose dive. I was never comfortable pushing the issue because I knew her history but I also knew our history and what was possible but the truth is you can't go back in time. If you are not aware of what is going on you can make the false assumption your wife is no longer attracted to you or no longer wants to have sex with you and it can be taken personal. I'm very fortunate that I have an open line of communication with my wife plus I'm older and have a better idea of what was actually going on. I see posts that depict most men as sex fiends. Some may very well be. Sex for me is very important. It is a connection with my wife that I need. It would not be filled by having sex with someone else. My wife knows and understands this and we meet in the middle. Hope that clears it up a little.
 
@Hooper I miss understood your statement and didn't realize you were referring to the the beginning of the relationship and not current day behaviors. Sorry, my bad.
 
No problem. My wife still has trouble following my train of thought after 17 years. I make perfect sense to myself though.
 
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