Okay ladies, this post may not be what you were looking to read today, but I feel like I need to address some of these issues. See, Gerad has been getting a lot of comments over on mission:husband from husbands who aren’t satisfied with their sex lives and feel like their wife couldn’t care less.
Here’s an anonymous email:
Like many marriages, I have a stronger physical desire than my wife. Nothing new there. However, I don’t feel like I put out much pressure toward this. Sure, it is important to me, but I know she needs her space, so many times I let my desires fall by the wayside. Likewise, I am disappointed when I am turned down, which happens most of the time, but I also don’t request it that much (our frequency is around once every 10 days or so). Here’s the problem. My wife recently revealed to me that my desires for her “make me feel like a prostitute” (said with obvious disdain), and that “that is all you need me for”. I love my wife. She is a great person. I do all she asks, provide for what she needs, listen when she needs someone to talk to, and never lay out any requirements for what she needs to do or help me with. However, now I am mostly paralyzed to inaction to the point that I have lost desire for my wife. How can she feel this way? What am I not doing right?
I feel like I can address this because as I was reading this comment my heart broke for the couple, but also, because Gerad could have written that a year or two ago. I was causing him so much pain and had no idea. My views on sex in marriage were skewed. I grew up in the “don’t have sex until you get married, at all costs” camp. Not a bad place to be, but I didn’t have anyone tell me how great it could be in marriage. I mean I had the normal, “just wait, it’s so great,” comments, but no one really spoke into my life and told me how great it really is, and how important it is, and how much work it is.
I started our marriage off like every other couple who don’t have sex until they get married, we had a lot of sex. Then life happened and I began to buy the lies. I didn’t feel like having sex, I didn’t want to tonight and I tried my best to be loving in my rejection. I didn’t understand why Gerad wanted or needed it all the time. I bought the lie that says guys are just pigs, they don’t really need sex this often, it’s just their way of fooling us women,”
I felt like if I was expected to “just give it to him” every 3 days or so because “my body is not my own.” I didn’t know why didn’t he have to go without when I didn’t feel like having sex then. I started to get frustrated with certain preachers on the topic of sex because I didn’t want to HAVE to give Gerad sex. I was tired, I was working full-time, taking care of a 1-year-old at work, keeping a house etc. You know, life. Fast forward a year, I was a stay at home mom with 2 kids, under 3 trying to potty train one and clean the house while chasing the other.
I NEVER wanted to have sex. I still expected Gerad to meet each and every one of my needs, I certainly made sure he knew if he wasn’t meeting my needs in the way I expected, and it wasn’t usually in the nicest way. I expected conversation, help around the house and with the kids, and if he even looked at me before that was done, I was irritated that he didn’t care that I wasn’t in the mood and therefore didn’t care about me.
I started reading some marriage books on sex, hoping they might let me off the hook, they never did. I started reading Is That All He Thinks About? How to Enjoy Great Sex with Your Husband by Marla Taviano at the recommendation of One Flesh Marriage. This book definitely didn’t let me off the hook, at first it really kinda irritated me. For some reason I kept reading and it changed everything!
In reference to a man’s heart she says,
It’s give and take. We women give to a lot of people, but when it comes to our husbands, we often just take. And harp and complain when we think they’re not giving enough. “He’s just using me for sex,” we whine self-righteously. And what are we using him for? A wedding ring? His sperm? …
OUCH! I read this and saw myself in her paragraph. I was the whiner, the complainer, the one who thought all my husband wanted was sex all the time.
Okay, so you wonder if sex is really a “NEED” for him? He just wants it to feel connected and for physical release you say? Here’s her reply
Whether or not sex is an actual ‘need’ for a guy is beside the point. It sure feels like a need to him, and when we willingly meet that need for our husbands, they become very grateful indeed.
Ok, here’s my take on what she says, it may sound harsh but its the reality I’ve come to live with: I AM SELFISH! Utterly and immensely SELFISH! I wanted to control when we had sex according to how I ‘feel’.
I didn’t change overnight, it took time. It wasn’t easy, I had to sacrifice, to choose to put Gerad above me. I had to learn how God created him different from me, not poorly or needy, just different. I began to look at Gerad the way God created him and to praise and appreciate the masculinity in him instead of trying to take it away and make him my girlfriend. (You know, cuddle on the couch, listen to my day and then watch a girly movie with me, maybe have some ice cream and then go to bed type of girlfriend. Sounds like a teenage girl sleepover to me. Definitely not the way God wants me to see my husband.) I need to see him as the masculine figure God wants created him to be. In turn, he treats and pursues me the way God desires for him to.
I belong to my lover, and his desire is for me.
Song of Solomon 7:10
May her breasts satisfy you always, may you ever be intoxicated with her love.
Proverbs 5:19
I’m pretty sure my husband can’t be intoxicated with my love if we have sex once a week, or month … I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t be satisfied if we only had sex when I feel like it. I have had to learn it’s not all about me. Sometimes I wish it was, but it’s not. And the beauty of God’s creation of sex in marriage is, he knew that once a wife has given herself to her husband that way, life seems to get in the way less. I’m happier, I have more grace, more patience. I speak kindly to my children when they annoy me. Not because of the physical act of sex, but because I am honoring God in my relationship with my husband.
How can you do this?
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Pray
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Pray
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Learn what God says about sex, not the world.
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Pray again
I can’t say it enough, pray! Prayer is such an important tool in changing your attitude about sex. I know it seems weird to pray about sex, at least it did to me first. Then I realized it was something God created for our marriage. When I was willing to be open and honest (not that God didn’t know anyway), the walls in my heart that were holding up the lies came crashing down. I learned I was being selfish in so many areas, but if you would have asked me I would have never thought I was a selfish person. I just bought the lies our society has pushed upon us about how guys are pigs…God changed my heart, there is no other explanation. I dug deep and saw the selfishness, desire to control and have my way in other areas of our marriage and started working on it. I’m a work in progress, I still have days where I struggle to want sex, or I complain that he’s asking again, it was just yesterday. But I know this, you can do it! God can change your attitude about sex, it won’t be easy, but it’ll be life changing!
That’s all I have for now, I’m going to address why sex is so important to our hubby’s in an upcoming post.
If this is something you’re working on, or worked through I’d love to hear your story.
Linking with To Love, Honor and Vacuum
mission:wife 
I was once very selfish just like you have spoke of here. I still can be at times, much to my regret, but at least I can actually see it and admit it these days. It is so true that when you change your mindset your whole relationship will change. He will be blessed by your loving attitude towards him, and the effort you put in to making Him happy. I still have to force the lies and lack of motivation out from my mind, I refuse to let the enemy attack my marriage, and in such a ridiculous way! By using something we can both thoroughly enjoy if we try. Great post! :)
Thanks for your comment!
My husband rarely shows me any type of physical affection so naturally it’s no different in the bedroom. We have sex, at most, once every 6 months and those are times when I finally initiate first contact. Hubby is a great provider and father to our young children and fulfills most every other aspect for me. However, I’m to the point of feeling completely un-connected with him with zero self-confidence and “the void” spills over into every aspect of my life. Do you have any advise/suggestions for my situation?
He has to be getting his sexual needs met somewhere. Do you have any reason to suspect him being involved in viewing porn? No normal man can wait 6 months at a time, and not care about sex. Just seems odd.
I have no reason to suspect any porn issues or that there is anyone else meeting his need; but I asked anyways. ;) He confirmed to me no porn and no one else, whew. I agree that it’s odd behavior but I don’t think that he “does not care about sex”. I think he does care about it—-but we just don’t do it! We’ve had this discussion of “no sex” a trillion times before over the span of our marriage (almost 12 years now). In other words, this is not a new issue. There has been zero progress made and I’m close to being completely defeated.
I agree, it seems odd. Thank you for a great post. In my former life (with late husband) I would often feel the same way until late husband had brain cancer for three years which affected his libido and then the tables turned. I will never again take a good sex life for granted.
Thanks for sharing your story Jessica. I am so sorry for your loss.
In my case when my wife rejected me it wasn’t long before I found another. Our marriage (not much of one) is hanging by a spiders web. When the man goes elsewhere it isn’t because he doesn’t love his wife. As I’ve been accused. It’s very painful and shameful and degrading to get sex outside the marriage. I’m a military guy whose been gone far too often over the entire span of our marriage. But even when I was home, she would berate me and make me feel like a criminal for wanting sex. An interloper in my own home. The hell I have lived at home crushes me. I’ve gone through the ranks and achieved tremendous recognition over 20 years of service. While she’s been able to stay home with our two children. I get told how easy I have it. How I am a cheater. Etc. Too far gone. I will retire soon and probably single too. I have two daughters; perhaps when I see them in the years to come I can share my cautionary tragedy. If you don’t make love to your husband, someone else does. Once every 5 days is about right. If you go a month, he’s got it already if he can. Ive spent 20 years living with Americas fighting men from all walks of life, every faith, every rave, every economic background. We *all* need sex. All of us will get it because sex is hope, reassurance, validation. Withhold sex and you will end your marriage, he will cheat, and hate you for it.
I would talk to your husband. Have a conversation (probably a difficult one) about what you are hoping for, how you are feeling and see if you can come to some conclusions. I’ll be praying for you both.
Thank you Valerie—It has always been a difficult conversation but always ends with good intentions. But the new found behavior does not ever last long. I’m weary of the same old conversation time and time again with no lasting results or progress.
I feel for you both there, I know when I was working on changing my attitude about sex it took MANY nights of the SAME conversation and I didn’t change. I wanted to and had good intentions but I didn’t, I would fight about anything else just so we didn’t have to have the SAME conversation over again. Offer grace, and remind him of previous conversations in a loving way. He may desperately want to change but not know the right way to go about it.
Hi Anonymous (I realize i’m a little late to this convo but) your story sounds very similar to what our story was. I did the talking to hubby, the praying to God – more talking to hubby — more praying to God … on and on the 3 to 6 month cycle went … for years. Finally, I stopped talking and stopped praying … yes I stopped praying! What I realized was that I had talked enough and prayed enough, now it was time for me to act. I started initiating … all the time.
My husband could probably write the letter above too. And I struggle with it. But I also don’t think he provides what I need.
I have sex with him because I’m suppose to. I had someone ask me recently if we make love often and I replied no, but we have sex. Within the last 24 hours he told me that I was lazy, I don’t do anything, I’m selfish, I don’t do anything to pull my weight. I spend the day at home with three children under the age of 4, keep up with them, help a friend with her daycare(for pay), make meals, clean up, am potty training our 2 year old, caring for the baby, homeschooling preschool with our 4 year old and trying to build my business. But, the laundry wasn’t all done, so that made me lazy and means I don’t do anything. With this most recent outlash, I reacted back, badly. I did not have the right response and later that night (after he went to work) I sent him a message, apologizing for my reaction being wrong and asking forgiveness. He came home this morning and was cold and unresponsive, so I asked if he got my message. He said yes, he just wasn’t sure if I ment it. He smiled and walked upstairs. I spent the morning getting the kids ready, breakfast, cleaning out the van and then lunch and down for rests. Next thing my husband is going to bed and asking me to come with him…which I did. And we had sex.
I too feel like a prostitute, that it’s just my job. There isn’t any love or caring in the other areas of our life. He doesn’t kiss me unless he wants sex. He doesn’t ever hold my hand or just cuddle with me. If I stand too close to him when we are out somewhere I’m crowding his space.
I’ve been praying and praying about it and still unsure how to feel differently. We finally are going to marriage counseling and I’m praying and hoping this will help fix some bigger issues so we can enjoy every aspect of our marriage.
Jen, I’m so sorry you feel this way in your marriage. I’ll be praying for you and your husband and for your counseling, that God works through both of you and molds you into the person your spouse needs and the person God created you to be.
As I read this tears are streaming down my face. As a victim of sexual abuse as a child, sex is the hardest thing in the world for me to do. I absolutely love my husband with my whole heart but I don’t give him sex often (once a week). I guess I’m failing miserably. I don’t ask him to be my girlfriend, we don’t/can’t have children & we just opened a new business. I feel even more like a failure so I’ll spend more time in prayer.
As I sit here & read this post I have tears streaming from my face. We have been married for 3 years & if you ask him he would say that we have a good sex life when the truth of the matter is that we don’t. We have sex once a week & I hate it. I love my husband with my whole heart but as a victim of sexual abuse sex is super hard for me. I turn him down a lot which I hate to do but it’s just what I have to do.
I realize after the blog that I’m failing miserably & I’ll give in to my husband more. I’ll ask God to break those chains that have me bound.
Thanks,
Lisa
Lisa, I’ll be praying for you. I can’t understand what you’ve been through, but in your comments I see a wife who desires to change, I know God will work mightily in your life. Besides prayer, being open and honest with your husband about how you are feeling is really important; I’m sure he’ll offer you grace in this area, especially if he knows you are trying.
Lisa, your pain is so evident and I am so sorry! I can’t help but be reminded of a study I did a few years ago (and maybe you’ve already done it), but Beth Moore’s Breaking Free talks about so much of what you’ve mentioned. As a victim of sexual abuse who then also struggled with promiscuity, she has such an awesome testimony of what God can do in the most difficult of circumstances.
Prayer is thee key! Great post.
Thanks Pearl :)
Great post, Valerie! And I love that you take on the hard topics… sex is sooooo important in a marriage! Clearly it’s a tough issue for many.
Thanks Wendi! It was a tough post to write, but I knew it needed done :)
I read this on my phone earlier and meant to come back and comment (I hate trying to comment on the phone) but just now remembered…this was so, so good. I think it’s such a needed message that many of us marriage bloggers have been writing about and I just so appreciated your transparency.
Thanks Elizabeth :) I too greatly dislike commenting on my phone, and if its been awhile since I commented on your blog, know that is the reason :) Thanks for sharing the Bible study with Lisa, I love the blog community for that reason!
Ok, so after reading this and all the comments, I had to ask my husband how he views our sex life because we don’t really do it so often. And just as I thought, fatigue and uncomfortability are the main issues. We are living with my parents now for a few months and their room is next to ours! 8l I hope to be able to move to our new home very soon! We’ve been waiting!
Anyway, thanks for this post. =)
Viviene-That does not sound like a situation conducive to sex :) Here’ a link to an article from J at Hot, Holy and Humorous about having sex in your parents house. http://hotholyhumorous.blogspot.com/2012/05/7-tips-for-having-sex-at-parents-house.html
Hope you can move soon :D
Ugh, I don’t like these posts. Because that’s all I ever read about! The man has the higher drive and the woman needs to make sure she pleases her husband. NOT true!!!! I grew up hearing that message and went into marriage thinking we would have sex every other day. Ummm….. wow, was I wrong. He has a low drive and we are doing good to if it happens once a week and it’s always with me initiating. We have had conversations many times about it and he just says he doesn’t know why it’s so low, but doesn’t have a desire to do much about it. He isn’t into women, porn and doesn’t masturbate.
I just have a hard time not feeling bitter about being fed the lie that the man’s sex drive is higher.
I’m sorry that you feel like it is a lie, it is the absolute truth in my marriage. I try my best to be as interested as I can in sex, but I just don’t need it as often as my husband. I do know that in most marriages the husband does have the higher drive, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t women with the higher drive. You are not alone in that fact, in our sexual satisfaction survey we’ve been seeing a lot of wives upset with the frequency of sex in their marriages. Here’s a couple of links to posts by another blogger I greatly respect about when you have the higher drive. I do not know if they fit your situation, but maybe they will help. http://tolovehonorandvacuum.com/2012/03/why-doesnt-my-husband-want-to-make-love/ and http://tolovehonorandvacuum.com/2012/03/when-your-spouse-isnt-interested-in-sex-communicating-your-needs/
Thanks for your comment!
I did just find this blog, from a wife who is the higher drive spouse. I thought it may be of help to you.
http://spiceandlove.wordpress.com/
I think the misconception you have fallen victim to is that this situation and advice only applies when the man is the Higher-drive spouse (HDS). But the roles can easily be reversed in this, and everything that Valerie said still applies. I think there is quite a diversity of marriages out there that fall on the spectrum at different places for each spouse’s sex drive, and this problematic dynamic can be addressed using Valerie’s situation and advice.
I don’t think it was inappropriate for Valerie to cast her article as she did though, with the man in the HDS role, because in her situation that’s how it happened and this was a post about her own life, and also because it is certainly the more common dynamic in society.
My wife began he passive aggressive sexual with holding the night we married. We had sex before marriage but stopped a year and a half before we got married, so there was plenty of anticipation atleast for me. We discussed our sex life before we married and I expressed how I had a very healthy appetite. She assured me that it would be great and hers was the same.
For the last ten years I’ve tried to be better lover, friend, cleaner, provider, have a better body, better personality to gain her sexual interest. She pretends she has no clue when I persue her sexually it leaves me confused, angry, dejected. It’s incredibly painful when the person who is supposed to love you the most shows no interest intimately after so many discussions and attempts to have a healthy sex life. Often Attemps are denied because my approach wasn’t right etc….
Yet she would even inappropoatly flirt with other men. Devastating.
Well after discovery what passive aggressiveness is, how with holding sex is tool number 1 for many (even christian women) and realising that this problem isn’t with me dispite what she says. I am looking forward to see what God has planned for my life after a divorce. I know the pain with be enormous, the damage will be severe. It will affect our children very negatively. It’s the lesser of two evils. They don’t need to grow up in a unhealthy home with a distorted sense of normal.
This is an old post, but I just came across it. I was searching the concept of my wife withholding sex. We can go weeks (if not months) and it terrorizes me. When we finally “do it” it feels like she is more just going along to get it over with. As a Christian couple I believe in keeping the fidelity of our marriage, but with these long periods of time without any intimacy I struggle and fail mightily in that regard (not with other women, but through pornography, which only further makes me ashamed of myself). I’ve tried hard to serve my wife, but I fall short of her expectations. As long as things aren’t perfect, sex is off the table. Things are rarely perfect. The lack of physical intimacy erodes my self-confidence and that impacts the rest of our marriage too. What do I do?!
PS – I read your husbands list of the 10 (11) things wives could do and he was spot on.
Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I saw myself all through this article. I shall begin to pray.
A very interesting post indeed
I am in a position at the moment where, after being married to my wife for 15 years we would go for in some cases upward of 9 months without sex. I understand all of the guys here that say that it rips apart your self image.
While I note long gaps, generally my wife would relent every month or so. I the end she ended up having an affair with another guy and proceeded to tell me how much better it was with him….she is now filing for divorce.
All of her family have been shocked by her actions as have all of her friends. Somehow she believes that god understands her situation and justifies it?
She told me that she too felt like a prostitute and that I was some dirty sex addict for wanting to engage with her. In the first year if our marriage we probably had sex 10 times. This includes the 2 times on our 2 week honeymoon!
To be fair there was some abuse stuff that she had not worked thru, but this really doesn’t explain or excuse life post counselling. In the end of the marriage she just wanted to have sex ?..and i quote “when I have needs”
I love one of the comments in the article about being her girlfriend…and I think that is what I became, I would watch chick flicks with her and do housework, believing the old adage ‘foreplay starts in the kitchen’ for my experience whoever made that one up was deluded.
As a full time mum, she was provided for, had a nice house, but still could not be bothered to clean, which I ended up having to do.
It is interesting to note looking back at the marriage for be last 14 years that the passive agressive behaviour was not limited to sex, but far wider. In the end I got the whole ‘I never loved you’ line, but you are my best friend….roughly translated ‘ your are my girlfriend ‘
Now my 3 kids are the ones that will wear the consequences.
Maybe we need to better educate our daughters what marriage is About…i
Wow, I feel so scared by some of theses posts! I have a higher sex drive than my husband. He has been tested and it is low for his age do to Crohns. Before we were married he put a lot of effort into sex and I felt desired. Since, he has now rejected me completely. I am very understanding about the medical side of things and try to be respectful. Some of the comments however about it is odd for a man to go so long without concern me. My husband has made no attempt to initate or show sexual desire for about three months. I have discovered that he recieves ramdom emails from women offering all kinds of things sexual. He swears that he gets these due to having beem on dating sites prior to our relationship and has nothing to do with them. I find this hard to believe and have expressed this. He now uses this as fuel to why he will not have sex, because I’m not trusting him. I’m really not sure what to think. I have seen his desire for sex and although it is not as high as mine how could I not think something is happening behind my back. He has always stuck with saying that he has never unfaithful to any relationship he has been in and never had one nightstands that he is not that kinda guy. I want to accept that, but struggle to get past what i’ve seen. How do you be the guy that gets dirty emails and not want sex? I’m beyond confused. Why would you marry a women and stop having sex when anything you desire she would offer? I get up everyday with him to make his lunch and see him off to work no matter what has happend with a kiss and hug. I keep the house always in order, laundry, cleaning, dished the whole 9. He comes home to a smile no matter what and Supper is always on the table when he get home. My life doesn’t revolve around him but much effort is put into my expression of love to my husband. Once a week I bake a pie or other things he like. I never complain about socks or underwear on the floor. I only wish for hugs, kisses, love and sex. I have even resigned to not expecting him to keep up with my sex drive and nothing works! I’m at a total loss, but take marriage serious enough not to just walk away! I need advice!
I know I was selfish like you say but I didn’t realise that until recently. We are having sex at least once every week. After some time I was the initiator. If I didn’t ask he won’t. My husband told me recently that even in the sex we have he wasn’t getting any satisfaction and he is doing it only for me. And it is becoming more than his control and he needs other means to satisfy him. Do you think my selfishness did change my sex life to zero? And if that is the case how can I change it?
Last night my husband told me he was tired of leaving with me the way we have been for the last 10 years.
As I read your story, I can read mims own. I was raised just like you, were sex is not permitted until you are married, but nobody told me how to enjoy it with my husband.
Now that I feel I am losing him completely, I fell a desperation for trying to make he believe this time I really want to change. That I want to be his forever and that I truly love him. Like you said, I recognize I am a selfish person, even when I am good and kind to the rest, but to him that has being so good to me, I have turn my back. I just want to live with the man I married 12 years ago, with the man I love.
Just came across this post. I appreciate the way you did not demonize men for wanting sex. The truth is, as a man living in a sexless marriage – meaning I want regular sex maybe a couple of times a week, and getting it about once every 6 or more months – it’s hard to not be angry and resentful towards my wife. I try to be playful and get her in the mood, I’m told that I’m pathetic. We go away for a weekend, I try to initiate, she doesn’t feel like it. I try to communicate my needs, I’m told that this is normal, and that maybe if I didn’t ask so much, it would happen. I try to get her to send me a naughty picture or talk dirty, to just be playful. Nothing. The only time that she has had frequent sex with me is when she decided that she wanted a child, and then again when she decided she wanted a second. So what am I supposed to think?
I’m criticized constantly, My close relationships with my family and friends are gone because everything revolves around my wife.
Now I’m angry, and I’ve turned into something that I never wanted to be. Granted, there are more issues at play here than just the lack of sex. But it’s just another item in a list of needs that are not being met. Have I thought about leaving? Absolutely. Have I thought about what it would be like to be with someone else? Sure. Do I crave some sort of positive relationship with a woman? You bet. I’m desperate for someone to just say something nice to me.
My wife makes the argument that why should she want to have sex with someone who is so bitter and nasty. I make the argument that I’m bitter and nasty because pays me so little care and attention that I’m doing what I have to do to survive. And the cycle continues.
To the woman above who suspected her husband might be looking at porn – who cares if he’s looking at porn? I think looking at porn is better than going outside the marriage. Some women – my wife included – would make the argument that porn is like cheating. I respectfully disagree. It’s the safest way that I can come close to satisfying a need that is not being met by my wife. And honestly – it takes balls to cut someone off from intimacy, sex and general kindness – then call them out for trying to satisfy that need through porn.
I do not endorse cheating on a spouse. I’ve thought about trying to satisfy my needs with another woman, but then I think of my daughter, and I think to myself, what will your daughter think of you in 10 years when she learns what you did, and is old enough to understand it? I want my daughter to love me. I remember being younger and thinking that people that cheat on their spouses are awful and despicable.
Now that I’ve walked a mile in these shoes, without sex, affection, intimacy or much closeness, I can understand what would drive some to infidelity, and while I don’t want to be that person, it’s hard for me to judge.
Hey Jim,
I feel your pain my friend. Pray for her, yes I know that sound glib, and your pain is real. I have walked your path, and sadly in my case my ex-wife was the one to go have multiple affairs and pull the pin on the marriage, and my kids are paying for it now. Like you I suffered emotional abuse for 15 years.
I can attest to the fact that Porn is destructive, and I also rationalised my porn addiction in the same way you describe, but all it did was to leave me feeling empty, guilty and affected my perception of women. Ask yourself (as I did) how would my daughters feel if they knew that I was a porn user? Once again, I am not judging you, I think that most if not all of the men and women that are on this thread would totally understand where you are at, but from my experience, what you feed your mind with is what grows on the inside.
In the end, you can only be responsible for your reaction to the situation and your integrity.
I would strongly suggest that you look at marriage counselling, your wife may not be open to it given the description you have provided, maybe not initially. But even if you go on your own it will (a) provide you with the tools to unpack how you feel, and (b) will show your wife that you have serious concerns that warrant outside help.
Trust me when I say this, your marriage is worth fighting for. The abuse (lets call it what it is) is wrong, it is just as wrong as physical abuse, and is just as destructive. Your wife needs to understand what she is doing to you is undermining you as not just her partner but also as your daughter’s dad.
I hope and pray that your story ends differently to mine. Remember God is Good!
All the best.
Sorry mate, as someone in the exact same situation as you (wanting sex a couple of times a week and only getting it every few months now – even on our honeymoon only getting it once a week), let me be blunt – porn is still cheating.
Just because you long for sex or even just closeness, it doesn’t justify things like porn, or cheating or masturbation or any of that kind of thing is okay. While you find more sympathy for those who cheat, the more my husband refuses and the more he withholds intimacy in every way possible (not just sex) now, the more I see cheats as awful and despicable. Never, not even once, not even for a second have I thought about trying to get my needs met from another man.
I have even considered suicide to end this lonely lack of intimacy – with my husband not only denying me intimacy in every way possible from him, but cutting me off from my friends and family by moving us a thousand miles away to somewhere that I’ve found the people to cold and unfriendly and shallow. I lost my job due to ill health, and I couldn’t face going to church alone when my husband stopped going and people were judgmental of me because of my husband no longer going.
While you turn to porn and crave kindness from any woman and describe yourself as angry, bitter and nasty, I have just become sadder and sadder and want nothing to do with any other man, because the ones that pursue me just makes the rejection by my husband hurt even more. I don’t even understand the fascination with porn, or “female porn” ie romance novels. What makes it worse is my husband is the one using porn and masturbation but constantly turns down sex – I am the one left constantly sexually frustrating but am not turning to porn or masturbation.