If your wife won't touch you, maybe something has changed. She may be experiencing depression or a lack of self-confidence, or maybe she feels like she's failing at this parenting thing. Even if it is difficult, do everything you can to put yourself in her shoes.
She May Have Some Health Issues
Hormonal imbalances, depression, chronic illness/pain, and some medications can all contribute to low sexual desire. Women are about twice as likely to experience depression as men. Over 60% of people who experience depression report having a negative effect on their libido.
It's normal for couples to go through ups and downs when it comes to physical intimacy. Women tend to experience the “I don't like my husband touching me” phase when they go through life changes or when their bodies change. Whatever the reason, it's ok if you don't want your husband to touch you.
Family history of anxiety disorders. Other phobias or mental health conditions. Personal history of negative experience with being touched. Personality type that tends to feel inhibited.
Most marriages will struggle to survive without emotional intimacy. Emotional connection is an essential ingredient in a healthy marriage, and a core reason couples enter relationships in the first place.
There are a few common reasons why couples develop a lack of intimacy. Stress is the most common reason. Stress can come from various sources such as pressure from work, child care, and financial troubles in the family. There are several studies that show the link between stress and a decrease in sex drive.
For example, talking to a partner excessively about work, being away from home, having little time or energy after working long hours, or work interfering in 'personal time' (like checking work emails in bed) can all contribute to a lack of intimacy in a relationship.
Anxiety, stress, and depression are also common sexless marriage effects on the husband. When a husband is denied sex at home for a long time, his mental health is likely to deteriorate from stress, overthinking, and inability to release the feel-good hormone from sex.
What 'Sexless' Really Means. Technically, a sexless relationship is defined as when a couple has sex less than once a month or less than 10 times a year, says Dr. Epstein.
While this is obviously critically important, there are many other kinds of dishonesty that can destroy marriages. Honesty regarding things such as spending habits, internet relationships, and substance use or addiction can create cracks in a marriage that quickly become chasms.
A marriage that lasts 50 years, even if the couple was not romantic for the last 20 years, is considered successful, whereas a love-filled 10-year marriage is not. Many couples choose to live in a loveless marriage due to children, financial reasons, or simply the practicality of living under one roof.
According to one study, approximately 15 percent of married couples are sexless: Spouses haven't had sex with each other in the past six months to one year.
Underlying Problems. One of the most common causes of thoughts like “I don't like being touched anymore” is underlying problems in the relationship. When we hold resentment towards our husbands, we don't feel connected with them. Often the negative feelings towards our partners manifest as sexual aversion.
When you don't get enough physical touch, you can become stressed, anxious, or depressed. As a response to stress, your body makes a hormone called cortisol. This can cause your heart rate, blood pressure, muscle tension, and breathing rate to go up, with bad effects for your immune and digestive systems.
A relationship can survive without intimacy, but it will become a real struggle for both partners as time goes on; neither partner will be happy or feel secure in the relationship. Without happiness and security, the basis of a relationship is complicated.
Lack of sex can lead to mental health issues, especially when the man feels that he cannot perform well in bed and satisfy his wife's sexual needs. This can lead to the psychological effects of sexless marriage. Depression and anxiety can become common consequences of a sexless marriage.
Women's sexual desires naturally fluctuate over the years. Highs and lows commonly coincide with the beginning or end of a relationship or with major life changes, such as pregnancy, menopause or illness. Some medications used for mood disorders also can cause low sex drive in women.
Often, a spouse hides something because they don't feel like they have a safe place to share. Or, they hide something because they are doing something wrong and fear that the truth might hurt you. That being said, the safer you can make the environment, the more likely they are to open up and tell you the truth.