Clueless,

As cally said...you aren't alone. I'm married to an LD male myself....it's taken us quite some time to finally start working through our issues.

Ok...you know your H does MB, he has a sex drive. He uses material with "fantasy" females in them....women that aren't realistic, women who are airbrushed and graphically fixed to "perfection"....something you can never be...no matter how hard you try, so try to remember that. Sure, if someone airbrushed photos of you, I bet you could look like that too....try to cut yourself some slack with the knowledge that, it's not you....it's him. But I know his behavior sure does make you question yourself doesn't it? There are several of us on this board who have gone through, or are going through, the same thing you are....you definitely aren't alone.

I would highly suggest counseling for the two of you. Your H is likely to have issues that perhaps he's not even aware he has....my H had many more issues that he knew about. Sure, he was aware of some of them....but not aware how deeply they affected him (and I) until the C started addressing them....and giving him the tools to work through them to start chaging his behavior.

FWIW...my H has always loved me VERY much, but didn't show it. I received pecks for kisses...you know the type you get from a friend or a parent. His hands NEVER roamed anywhere, and when we did ML (which might be once every 3-6 months...once it was a year) it was the same thing everytime. His behavior isn't all that surprising to me.... few years ago, it would have been. But since I've been researching and working on this issue with my H I'm finding....it's not so rare. I'm not the freak I once felt like I was.....and you certainly aren't either. But there are issues to be dealt with, so certainly.....do not marry him until this is resolved.

Here's a couple of suggestions for you.

#1 Get a good marriage counselor, one who deals with relationship and sexual issues.

#2 Be specific with him about what type of behavior you need from him. You may feel you've told him what you need, but all too often we still are vague. Saying things like "I need you to show me you want me or find me attractive" is vague. Tell him specifics, you might want to sit down and think about some of the things he's done in the past to you, sexually...or non sexually that you really liked or that made you feel special, that way you can communicate those to him...so he knows specifically what behavior he can repeat.

Hang in there!

GEL


Well behaved women rarely ever make history!