Wow. You're 34 and you think 8 is a lot? And your female friends think 3-5 is average? Wow. It makes me wonder what has changed since you were my age (23), lol...!

I am 23, remained a virgin until I was 18 and have since then slept with 7 different men (penetration/vaginal sex, I don't count touching, fingering or oral as sleeping with someone). Only one of them only one time (one-night stand), the rest I have had either a relationship with or we have ended up sleeping together more than once. I have two very different groups of friends, and in one of them (school friends from junior high etc.) I think I am at around the average, maybe a bit higher. I was probably the one who remained a virgin the longest, but I have since "caught up" with some of my friends when it comes to numbers. In my other group of friends, though, I am one of those who have slept with the fewest people. I am not a one-night stand person. Some of my single friends (both men and women) sleep with at least as many in a few months as I have in my whole life. So, no, 8 at 34 is NOT a lot. Not at all.

Personally, I think that anyone who considers a number "too much" are not worth being with. They should appreciate experience, and that you are not afraid to enjoy sex. It would be a dealbreaker for me if a guy I was with was disturbed by previous sex partners.