Last, I have noticed with my friends and with my husband's divorce clients that it really appears that the longer you go without being physically intimate, the harder it becomes to be physically intimate. Sometimes the only answer seems to be just decide to do and do so.

I think this is true. I don't think of touch as particularly maternal, perhaps because I have more resistance to it. So it may be more related to sexual orientation than I first thought. I do feel touch deprived, independent of sexual feeling.

I decided not too long ago to explore some avenues of touch through massage. I'm an ex-pat in a country that places much more emphasis on health through physical touch than the US. I found a husband and wife team through a friend. He does more chiropractic/sports work and various types of massage; she specializes in Reiki. They're both seniors and look 20 years younger than they are!

I've worked with both of them, and despite the language barriers, communication hasn't been a great problem. I think if I could communicate better with her during Reiki sessions, I could process it better, as at times, it's been quite powerful. But she seems adept, and has figured out how to modulate what she does based upon my reactions.

But overall, it's been good for me. Not totally comfortable, but good in the sense of getting more comfortable in my body and feeling an emotional release.