I (22F) am scared of pregnancy and my boyfriend (22M) says it's okay if we stop having sex. Is this a bad idea?

I'm going to be a little bit of a contrasting voice here, but take it with a grain of salt as this is not common.

I'm a little bit like you, with some differences. I have a boyfriend. We've been together 7 years. We tried having sex a long time ago because that's what people do, and I was curious. It didn't work out for many reasons (turns out i'm asexual and also not physically built for it - soooo painful, zero pleasure. I actually pretty much can't feel pleasure, its just discomfort or pain). I'm also severely tokophobic - getting pregnant would probably physically kill me, even without my mental issues (any time I got a scare I would self harm, usually by going without food or punching my stomach. Wasn't healthy. Don't do that.)

Truth is, i'm a ball of nerves on a good day, and it's not terribly fixable. Even as an asexual though, I worried about my boyfriend. I thought, how would this work? Of course guys want sex, and I can't seem to do that. But he suggested we stop. He promised he didn't even want to if I wasn't enjoying it. Luckily, his drive is very low, so it didn't become an issue.

Thought about blowjobs, but I actually have a tiny jaw (multiple surgeries have been needed to correct it and its still not great) and breathing problems. Thought about handjobs, that doesn't work well either. I'd definitely keep trying either if he asked, though, because I do love him.

But yeah. Point is, 7 years later, still going strong. You CAN have a loving relationship without sex, but it IS RARE. You cannot expect most guys to be okay with it. Maybe you have one who will be, I don't know.

But here's my advice. If you do go with out, keep up physical intimacy (cuddling, kissing, whatever you enjoy). Have him promise that if he's ever having doubts or issues with the arrangement, to tell you and you can figure something out. I did tell mine that if we used 3 methods or one of us found someone to sterilize us i'd try actual sex again, but its actually not an issue not having it apparently. Btw, this no sex thing ONLY WORKS IF BOTH PARTIES ARE ABSOLUTELY OKAY WITH IT. Make sure he is aware that he needs to talk to you if his thoughts change.

I wish you luck. In your position, i'd probably abstain too.

/r/relationships Thread