As I was responding to this post with some anecdotes of past sexual desire I realized that part of my life may have passed. Not from lack of desire, but lack of opportunities. But more than the act of sexual intercourse I miss the gentle touches. The back of a woman's hand softly going down the side of my face. Taking my hand or arm as we walk. Wrapping her her arms around my shoulders and laughing loudly.
A several years back I met someone. We later met in downtown Ft. Worth for dinner. The rest of the evening we walked and talked while holding hands and gentle little kisses. We stopped at several places for beer or wine. We came separately and left the same way. We later had sex. It was great, but my favorite memory of those two events is the walk around town.

I'm British. We mostly prefer not to talk about these things.

My history with sex has left me wondering if I will ever have a fulfilling sexual relationship in my life. At this point, I don't know if the scars are permanent or not. Much of the problem stems from the religious upbringing I had. Those ideas led me into a marriage that I now term a 10 year rape. The whole mentality in the marriage was rape-like and I had no choice about sex in the relationship. I've come to terms with it as much as possible and am happy with my newfound relationship with vibrators so I'm living life as fully as possible right now but I would love to someday know what it is like to have sex with someone who really respects and loves me.

Plenty of bad decisions made due to sexual desires.
I tend not to trust anyone who claims they haven't.
I don't think they're being honest with themselves, or anyone else.
Sex makes people do stupid/crazy things.
That said, I think it's wrong to ask anyone what their "number" is.

No regrets though.
I had a boatload of fun.

My sex drive has always been high but I confuse lust with love often and I’m left feeling empty. Haven’t met my match in terms of great sex with great emotional compatibility, it’s always one or the other.

Absolutely. I had an average sex drive until my late 30’s, then it went into overdrive. My ex lost interest in sex not long after our second child was born...about 5 or 6 years into the marriage. I finally divorced him after 20 years of marriage. I’m still working on getting over the feeling there was something wrong with me and that’s why he wasn’t interested in sex. To be honest, I think he’s just asexual. People’s sex drives can change over time, if you and your partner aren’t in sync, it can be very emotionally painful.

As a single woman in her mid-40s with a high sex drive, I’m finding dating difficult. Maybe it’s difficult regardless. If I like a guy and we click, I’d sleep with him. I’ve come to discover I’m not looked at as dating material after that, just someone for sex. So now I’m trying to keep my libido in check when I date, although I haven’t had many dates in the last 6 months.

I don’t know, it kind of makes me sad that it’s 2019 and women still aren’t supposed to be sexual creatures.

When sexual desire results in children, your life is certainly altered both for men and women.

I didn’t experience sexual desire until I got to college. I did have two mad crushes as a teen, one that lasted through middle school and one that lasted through high school – both unrequited – where the most I would have wanted was to maybe have long deep conversations and hug each other. I felt sex was gross, and at the same time I felt what the heck was wrong with me, especially as I saw everyone else my age seeming to have no problem with it – it lead to my being very judgmental about anyone who was sexually active.

That changed in college, and it came on very strong, and was a big surprise to me when it did. It lead to some very unhealthy obsessions, messed-up boundaries, and painful relationships. I had other problems, too, and though I managed to make it through school and graduate, I pretty much I shut down afterwards. Sexual desire was the last thing on my mind, and even the sight of two people holding hands would freak me out. I even had a hard enough time with friendships and I became a serious social recluse for quite a while.

Turning my life around was a slow and gradual process, but with work I was eventually able to come out of that. Got more comfortable socially and more comfortable being interactive in general, and also did start dating again, but didn’t have a strong sexual desire. Until a few years ago – and again it hit me like gangbusters, but this time I was prepared for it, enjoyed it, and it lead to some nice experiences. The desire is still there and still just as strong, but I need to take a time-out from dating to take care of my health and financial situation; they pull too much focus right now and effect my energy and confidence. Haven’t cut off the possibility – if I met someone and it worked out, that would be great; I’m just not actively looking… But I’m more and more intrigued and fascinated by these feelings all the time, and just trying to take that in – feeling desirable is just a great feeling in and of itself.

That family friend is what the #MeToo Movement is about!

I think about this a lot these days. How do I want to live out the rest of my life? How sexually promiscuous do I want to be? Do I want steady and boring or do I want fun and insecure? Life is short. I want to enjoy whats left. Sometimes enjoyment comes with risk. Is the fun in moment worth possibly getting hurt later? Falling in love feels so good. Is it worth the heartache if it doesn't work out? Is falling for someone inappropriate something that you should let happen or run from? I think that I find it more fun when there is risk. Is that messed up? Yet, feeling taken advantage of is not great. It can take a long time to lose that attachment that sexual intimacy builds. Those are the kinds of thoughts that go through my mind these days. I know that some of my most enjoyable moments are out dancing with many men vying for my attention on the dance floor. Do I just need this ego boosting experience to recover from my marriage? At my age I should know more answers, but at least I know the questions.

Sexual desire does seem to increase for some as they age, and the oxytocin is indeed powerful.

I enjoy all aspects of the intimacy - I use that term instead of sex because the touch is wonderful in every way. It’s not all about penetration or orgasm, although those are wonderful. I’m wanting a long term relationship that has all aspects of intimacy, physical, emotional, intellectual.

“Desire enters a young girl's life as a sudden force from the outside world, from men and boys, a confusing, overwhelming, and sometimes frightening bombardment that makes it difficult to find the mental space to figure out our own hungers.”

No. Not for me. I had desires before anyone expressed them toward me.

I wonder how much your parents told you about sex? Most dont' and we are left floundering in the dark. Learning it from our friends, books or places where we should not. No wonder we don't know what to do, how to react when something happens.

I don't understand . U were 15 when a married family friend man was allover u physically ?
Has he been hung by now ? Bcz if u were my daughter , I can tell u that much , the priest will had not find his body to do the funeral . Wow .
And how old was Daryl when he asked u to marry him ? I don't get it . U were 15 or 16 , how old was he ?
I am confused . Was this type of thing acceptable back then ?

How women are indoctrinated from birth, strictly as a control means, with the constant bombardment that sex is "nasty", "dirty", "filthy", "slutty", "guttery", "dangerous", "unhealthy" has to lead to many women having such a distorted view of sex and it's necessary and essential place in the human condition is appalling to say the least. A good and proper sex education is essential for both males and females to function properly in any and all societies.
The penis and vagina were created by nature and evolved to have a purpose and to be used, both for input activity and output activity.

I married young,22, my wife was 19. Divorce 3 years later. I was devastated, had no idea how to attract women, especially with my son in tow. At a party I met Peg, 12 years older. She knew exactly what I needed and it was exactly what SHE needed. I learned more in the next three years than most men learn their entire life. We are still friends, I talk to her on Facebook. So yes, a woman's sexuality can change lives, it sure did mine.

Ah, sexual urges ... they've moved me to make some not so wise decisions, and other decisions that were wise (and fun), indeed !

Sexual desire alters everyone's lives. It drives us to do things we normally wouldn't in order to satisfy those desires. It also affects everyone differently depending upon the sociological views of family and peers - sometimes positive, sometimes negative, blah blah blah.

Enjoy the 1st date today.

Does sexual desire alter our lives?

I became flooded with sexual desire the year I turned 50. I went from feeling asexual to needing lots of sex. My marriage ended as a result.

It's very encouraging to hear that some women still have sexual desire. It's not something I'm able to see. Thank you all for sharing.

It's simply the "Principles of lust"

What happened to the guy with the plane?

What "thoughts" would you like?
I'd search for your own personal ideal. As a very sexual woman, is one man enough? Are you exploring alternative lifestyles? Swinging? Polyamorous?
Sounds like it, Otherwise your goal would be a monogamous LTR with one man. Any interest in other women?
You're a very attractive woman. As such, It seems it's up to you to decide what you want; experiment, explore, take charge.

Prime driving force in many males especially teenagers when blood is mostly hormones strong drive to reproduce. A woman who has a strong drive or not as sexually supressed is highly desirable and can make for a very happy life . So yes it can alter life for good or bad

You can be a good woman and still have appetites.