GoodGuys2GreatMen Video Podcast

How Husbands Create Low Libido In Their Wives

Dan Dore & Steve Horsmon • 3m 49s • 27 May 2024

Book a free 90 minute strategy call →
How Husbands Create Low Libido In Their Wives
Video overview: If your wife says she has a low libido, it’s easy to believe sex is the whole problem. But what if the real issue is the pressure, fear, neediness, and lack of grounded confidence that has quietly damaged the trust between you?

If you’re living with a wife who says she’s just not that interested in sex, I know how painful and confusing that can feel.

You may hear things like, “Sex is more important to you than it is to me,” or “All you ever think about is sex,” or the one that really stings, “I need you to be more confident if I’m going to feel attracted to you.” And when you hear that, something inside you can panic.

You start wondering what happened to the woman who used to want you. You start wondering if she’s broken, if you’re broken, or if the whole relationship is slowly dying right in front of you.

Most guys don’t know what to do with that kind of rejection. They try to be patient. They try to be nicer. They try to talk about it, fix it, explain it, ask for it, negotiate for it, or quietly suffer through it while pretending they’re okay.

But inside, they’re not okay.

They feel unwanted. They feel humiliated. They feel like their own wife sees their desire as a problem, a burden, or some childish need she wishes would just go away.

That pain is real. I’m not going to minimize it.

But I also want to tell you something that may be hard to hear. One of the most common ways men damage the sexual connection in marriage is by making their wife responsible for soothing their insecurity.

That doesn’t mean you’re bad. It doesn’t mean you’re needy because you want sex. It doesn’t mean you should pretend desire doesn’t matter.

It means your wife can feel the difference between a man who desires her from strength and a man who is trying to get reassurance from her body.

That difference matters more than most men realize.

A woman may say she has a low libido because that’s the language she has. She may truly believe she’s not that sexual anymore. But many times, what she really means is, “I don’t feel free, safe, relaxed, or drawn toward you right now.”

That is a very different problem.

When a man becomes anxious around sex, he often starts hovering. He checks her mood. He watches for openings. He gets extra helpful and secretly hopes it will lead somewhere. He touches her with an unspoken question attached to it.

He becomes what I’ve called a hummingbird husband, flitting around her, trying to find the sweet spot where she might finally give him what he wants.

And she feels it.

She may not be able to explain it well. She may call it pressure. She may call it neediness. She may call it “all you ever think about is sex.” But underneath all those words, she’s reacting to the energy of a man who has lost himself.

That’s the part I want you to really look at.

Because the answer is not to become colder. It’s not to punish her by pulling away. It’s not to act like you don’t care. And it’s definitely not to shame her for not wanting what you want.

The answer is to become more solid in yourself.

A confident man can want sex without needing sex to prove he’s okay. He can desire his wife without making her responsible for his self-worth. He can hear “no” without collapsing, sulking, explaining, defending, or turning into a wounded little boy.

That kind of man feels different.

He doesn’t hover. He doesn’t beg with his behavior. He doesn’t turn every hug into a question. He doesn’t treat his wife’s body like the answer to his anxiety.

He leads himself first.

That is where attraction starts to have room to breathe again. Not because you found the perfect line to say. Not because you learned a technique. But because the emotional pressure in the relationship starts to change when you stop making her the judge of your worth.

This matters right now because the longer this pattern goes on, the more resentment builds on both sides.

You resent her for rejecting you. She resents you for needing something from her that she doesn’t feel free to give. You both start protecting yourselves. You both start telling private stories about each other. And before long, the marriage feels more like a standoff than a place of love, trust, play, and desire.

But this can change.

Not by fixing her libido. Not by convincing her to understand your pain. Not by trying to become the perfect husband so she finally rewards you with affection.

It changes when you become the kind of man you respect again.

The man who knows what he wants. The man who can speak clearly without pressure. The man who can love deeply without losing himself. The man who can stand in his own life with confidence, even when his wife is distant, uncertain, cold, or uninterested.

That’s the man she can feel.

And more importantly, that’s the man you can finally trust.

Start With Yourself First

If your marriage feels tense, sexless, or full of quiet rejection, you don’t have to keep guessing your way through it alone. We help men become calmer, clearer, and more confident so they can stop chasing reassurance and start leading themselves with strength.

Talk to a coach →

About the Hosts

Steve Horsmon & Dan Dore | Certified Professional Men’s Coach

Steve Horsmon and Dan Dore have spent over a decade supporting good men who are confused, frustrated, and afraid that their marriages and families are falling apart with no idea what to do about it. We've both experienced the same emotions that you're going through now. We know what it feels like to try all the mainstream try harder, be nicer advice while watching things continue to get worse. And that's exactly why Goodguys2Greatmen exists. Since 2012, we've coached thousands of men through some of the hardest periods of their lives; marriage breakdown, emotional distance, sexless relationships, fears of divorce or separation. We focus on practical solutions to help you survive some of the most challenging and painful experiences that a man can go through. This podcast is for men who are done waiting for their life and relationships to improve and are ready to make some bold decisions so that you become more calm and confident and start moving toward what you really want.