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Is Sex Outside Marriage More Prevalent in Senior Couples?

June 30, 2019 | Life | By Lisa Smith

Nicholas H. Wolfinger of the University of Utah carried out a research titled ‘America’s New Generation Gap in Extramarital Sex’, in which he found that the number of Americans in their middle ages who were having sex outside their marriage was on the rise. Why is this happening? Read on to know is sex outside marriage more prevalent in senior couples?

Why Are Senior Couples Having Sex Outside Their Marriage

Boredom

After many years of being together, the sex gets routine and monotonous. Hence, often, seniors begin to look for new avenues so as to bring about excitement in their lives.

Lack Of Sex In The Marriage

With age, the desire for sex may fall due to hormonal changes, ill health, certain medications. It can so happen that in a couple, while one does not feel like having sex anymore, the other still wants it. When such mismatches happen, the option is then to seek a partner outside the marriage

Conflicts

It is possible that a long term marriage begins to suffer from conflicts. When these disagreements and fights go beyond a certain level, the relationship between the couple stops existing. That is when the man and the woman start looking for new options.

Lack Of Appreciation

One of the partners in the marriage can start to feel neglected, taken for granted, and unappreciated. In times like this, if he/she comes across another person who fulfills these gaps, then the possibility of a bond developing is always this. Often this culminates into sex outside the marriage.

No Time

When the couple gets too busy with their work and social commitments such that they have no time left for the partner, then it is possible that the other partner will look for avenues outside the marriage to have fun with.

Get Attracted To Younger People

With age, the looks of people change and old age starts to set in. Hence, there are times when the man/woman gets attracted to someone who is younger than the current partner. These could either lead to one-night stands or even turn into more serious relationships.

Gives A Sense of Purpose

It is possible that at this age, one partner is ailing and the other is spending most of the time performing the job of only a caregiver. At times like this there is likely to come a point in time when the caregiver needs to find a new purpose in life. This often leads to indulging in sex with a new partner outside the marriage.

Casual Attitude Towards Sex

This group belong to the era of the ‘Swinging Sixties’ and often have a more laid back and casual attitude toward sex. For instance, many in this age group feel that kissing someone who is not the current partner is not adultery. Such kind of an outlook also, hence, leads to having sex outside marriage.

Consciously Decide Together To Have Sex Outside The Marriage

Not all reasons of having sex outside the marriage can be termed as ‘cheating’ or ‘adultery’. In the modern times, couples in their 50s, are consciously deciding, together, to have sex partners outside the marriage. This is being done to as to add a new spark to the existing marriage. These come in the form of polyamory wherein one person has more than one sexual partner and everyone is aware of the various partners. Another option is swinging where couples switch partners in order to have sex.

Various reasons lead many to resort to sex outside the marriage while still being officially married. Sometimes couples decide to be in the marriage due to reasons like security, society, and tradition. There is often a lot of grey between the fact of ‘being married’ and the ‘desire for excitement’. If betrayal, guilt, cheating, is not a part of this act then maybe it is better to have a life that is exciting rather than to live one that is simply of existence. What are your thoughts on this?