I have forgive..we are together and I am not divorcing him because there are benefits and I want to honor God for my commitment ..yet...sex is just not a beautiful thing anymore. I really would rather not. I oblige out of duty and this just makes-him pull away even more. We are nice and friendly with each other and sleep in the same room..talk about what needs to be done...bills etc...trash....clean up.... day to day things...that is about it. If I am alone it is okay. If he is there it is okay... I would rather much be celibate and and get a foot massage, full body massage or a back rub and prayer every night. That to me is what I call being intimate with this man and what I need the most . Is there hope? I really have forgivien..but I am working through this other stuff. HElp.
Wow, that's a tough one. On the one hand, I can certainly see why it would be hard to have sex after something like that. There'd be the 'ick' factor that someone else had been with your spouse, and maybe even a reminder of the betrayal whenever sex occurs.
On the other hand, infidelity aside, for a lot of men, a foot rub doesn't satisfy the urge at all. Sex with the wife is perceived as a deep emotional and even physical need. And sex without any love and affection doesn't satisfy the emotional hunger.
As far as marital 'duty' goes, the Bible says for each spouse to offer 'due benevolence'. One little lesson to remember from that is that the way the sex is supposed to be given is supposed to be 'benevolent' an expression of love and kindness, and not 'let's get it over with.' Proverbs 5 talks about a man always being intoxicated with his wife's love. That's a passage talking about sex with one's wife as opposed to adultery, so it is sexual in nature. So in a healthy marriage, the love that goes along with sex should be 'intoxicating'. Dry duty sex doesn't usually do that.
Forgiving is one thing. Healing up is another. If you've taken him back, you'll have to be a wife with him. All I can advise is to pray for healing and also to pray with your husband. Of course, people on the forum like myself can pray for you and your husband as well.