Request Newsletter | Bridal Online Website | Return To Main Page

Marriage & Wedding Information


Beyond Her Grasp


I am a woman, 42, who three years ago married a wonderful man who will be 48 on his next birthday. I love him very, very much. The only problem is our sex life is horrible. Pretty much nonexistent. I can safely say we have had sex maybe 20 times in our six year relationship.

When I've tried numerous times to talk to him, he gets defensive and says, "There's nothing wrong with me." He also says, if I want to have sex, I should just say so. But when I make advances, he pushes me away thinking I am playing with him. Then he leaves the room. Of course I get frustrated, out of the mood, and give up.

I love my husband so much I don't make a big deal of it, although I know this is not normal or healthy. I can't get him to go to counseling or discuss this. I am at my sexual peak, and I am tired of dreaming of sex with other men. I want our relationship to work, but I just don't know how much longer I can go on like this.

Claire

Claire, you can work on planting a garden, you can work on your weight loss, you can work on your reading speed. But you cannot work on someone else's problem, unless they are willing, and failure is guaranteed when they tell you they do not have a problem.

Thoreau said, "It takes two to speak the truth--one to speak and another to hear." Your husband will not hear or discuss reality, the reality of the situation as you see it. You married him knowing he had this problem. Marriage does not cure a problem, it makes you a party to it for awhile.

Is this the hard lesson you had to learn? That you cannot marry a man with a serious problem and expect to fix it.

Calling Her Bluff

I've been with my boyfriend for four years, and he is going through the longest divorce known to man. His soon-to-be ex knows of me and told him she is insanely jealous. She makes my life complete hell by e-mailing him sexual innuendoes, asking him for expensive gifts, and calling him an average of 12 times a day.

I told him to cut the cord. If he wants to be with me, he has to protect me, be true to me, and make me feel secure in this relationship. We even tried counseling a few years back, and then he cheated on me with her. Many times I told him to get on with this divorce or I would be gone, but it doesn't seem to scare him anymore.

How do I get my point across to this man, and do I have any grounds to tell this woman to leave him alone and just tend to her children?

Paige

Paige, the one thing which may set you free is to look on this situation from a different point of view. He didn't cheat on you with her. She's his wife. He's cheating on her with you. You describe her as his soon-to-be ex, but "soon-to-be ex" is a term more likely to describe your future, not hers.

You threaten and threaten to leave, and you never do. Bluffing in poker may be good strategy, but bluffing in life is weak. Once your bluff is called, you've lost all power and all credibility. And counseling? Think about how funny that is. You went for relationship counseling with a man in a marriage to another woman.

Why do you keep plodding forward? Because you want to be married. There is nothing wrong with that. But you cannot marry someone who is already married. There is a simple solution. Don't give up wanting to be married, just give up married men.

Direct Answers - Column for the week of November 22, 2004

About The Author

Authors and columnists Wayne and Tamara Mitchell can be reached at www.WayneAndTamara.com.

Send letters to: Direct Answers, PO Box 964, Springfield, MO 65801 or email: DirectAnswers@WayneAndTamara.com.


MORE RESOURCES:

E! Online

Do We Lap Up 'Scary' Wedding Films? We Do
Washington Post, United States - 11 hours ago
Kate Hudson, left, and Anne Hathaway play best friends mutated into selfish harridans, each fighting to have her perfect wedding, in "Bride Wars. ...
13 Fairytale Wedding Gowns Entertainment Weekly
Hollywood and weddings make such a nice couple Tulsa World
Wedding Bells for Anne Hathaway? The Star-Ledger - NJ.com
Los Angeles Times - The Associated Press
all 488 news articles


New York Daily News

Eloping to Vegas? Why Not Lower Manhattan?
New York Times, United States - 12 hours ago
But, with revenues tight and tourist dollars desperately needed, the Bloomberg administration has created a 24000-square-foot wedding palace, in the hope of ...
NY hears wedding bells, aims to compete with Vegas The Associated Press
Manhattan's new Marriage Bureau earns wows as a place to say your vows New York Daily News
Manhattan Seeks To Rival Las Vegas As Wedding Quickie Wedding ... AHN
WNYC - HappyNews.com
all 236 news articles


Contactmusic.com

Fergie Preps for Her "Very Private" Wedding
E! Online - 20 hours ago
On the seductive side, Fergie did some lingerie shopping on Sunday at Kiki de Montparnasse, perhaps picking up something sexy to slip into after the wedding ...
Fergie and Josh Wedding Details Revealed! Extra TV
Fergie Gets Ready For Her Super-Secret Wedding Celebuzz
Fergie's Wedding Countdown! OK! Magazine
AceShowbiz - HipHopRX
all 42 news articles


Newlyweds sue after sprinklers rain on their wedding
New York Daily News, NY - 7 hours ago
"I can't say it ruined my wedding. Nothing could have ruined my day," Svetlana said. "I felt the worst for my guests. I had people who were soaked from head ...


E! Online

No Boomboxes at Ione Skye & Ben Lee's Wedding
E! Online - 29 minutes ago
Australian singer Ben Lee didn't receive a pen from Ione Skye on their recent trip to India…he received an "I do!" After consulting with their guru, ...


San Francisco Chronicle

Blizzard Almost Wrecked Feguson's Wedding
San Francisco Chronicle,  USA - 18 hours ago
AP Photo/Peter Kramer Comedian and talk show host Craig Ferguson's secret Christmas wedding almost ended in disaster when a snow storm forced nearly all the ...
'Late Late Show' host reveals his holiday wedding The Associated Press
Craig Ferguson's Secret Wedding Star Magazine
Congrats on getting hitched, Craig Ferguson! Entertainment Weekly
TV Guide - Albumista
all 235 news articles


Washington Post

Alyssa Milano: Wedding Bells
The Gossip Girls - Jan 6, 2009
... was available about the impending nuptials, but stay linked to the Gossip Girls for the latest on Alyssa Milano’s engagement and wedding details.
Charmed! Alyssa Milano engaged to agent David Bugliari, wedding ... Examiner.com
Actress Alyssa Milano to wed Hollywood agent The Associated Press
Jennifer Garner and Alyssa Milano (Photos) Baby and a Wedding National Ledger
People Magazine - Waleg.com
all 249 news articles


Need a tail-less dolphin for your wedding?
MSNBC - 20 hours ago
The Clearwater Marine Aquarium is giving away a free wedding package, where one couple will be chosen to get married on a platform over the main dolphin ...
Want to get married at the Clearwater aquarium? Tampabay.com
all 22 news articles


Get through your post-wedding blues
SunHerald.com, MS - 3 hours ago
planning your wedding. And now it's all over. The dream dress has been worn, the vows have been spoken and the guests have gone home. What's a bride to do? ...


Entertainmentwise

Britney & Sons at Louisiana Wedding
Extra TV - Jan 7, 2009
"Circus" ringmaster Britney Spears put on this classic little black dress for her brother Bryan's wedding in Kentwood on New Year's Eve -- with adorable ...
Britney Spears Dresses Up Her Boys for Bro's Wedding Celebuzz
Britney Spears takes the kids to bro's wedding Tampabay.com
Britney Spears: Before Bryan’s Wedding Just Jared
Fashion.ie - People Magazine
all 21 news articles

Wedding - Google News

home | site map

Site Map | Site Map | Links

© 2006