Woman who had sex every day for a year explains what lasting impacts it's had three years later
A married couple had sex every single day for a whole year and it made an impact that was still being felt three years on.
The curious Brittany Gibbons fancied experimenting to see how a 365 day streak of getting freaky beneath the sheets would impact her marriage after hearing that it helped one of her friend's relationships.
There wasn't any problem with their marriage, but Brittany confessed she completed the year-long challenge to 'save herself'.
The mum-of-three's self-confidence had depleted after giving birth to her third child, she wrote in an article for Women’s Health: "I didn't let myself be naked. I kept the lights off during sex, hid my stomach and boobs inside a camisole, and I waited for my husband to leave the bedroom before barreling from the shower to my closet to get dressed.
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"Having sex every day for a year seemed obnoxious but also an intriguing way to force myself into facing my body each day. I mean, eventually, the covers would have to come off, and the lights would have to stay on, right?"
Brittany explained that the early stages were 'rough' as even 'the thought' of sex left her feeling exhausted - but she soon got into the swing of things.
"As the months passed, I started looking forward to it. Sex begat more sex, and those connected, loved-up feelings began to creep outside of the bedroom - or, in our case, the laundry room, the closet, and our garage - and into our everyday lives," she said.
"We were more romantic with each other, touching arms as we passed, kissing longer before work - and not just the cold, familiar peck.
"Our relationship was stronger and better when our intimacy was flourishing. On a personal level, the changes in the way I saw my body were staggering.
"I found myself enjoying sex again, making a playlist of songs that turned me on, and no longer being hyper-aware of the sounds my curvy body was making. Like the way my thighs clapped together, or my tummy smacked his."
By the time they hit the six-month mark, Brittany was ready to stop hiding her body behind a camisole, and she ended up developing an 'amazing' relationship with her body by the end of the year.
When the 365-day period ended, the mum explained that she and her husband didn't keep up their daily romps, but that they did leave a lasting impact on their relationship.
"I totally don't have sex with my husband every day, not anymore," Brittany said. "Not because we're sick of each other - although I'll admit, my pelvis and thighs welcomed the rest - but because we're humans, not robots.
"However, the effects and lessons from the experience are still apparent in our marriage even now. First, we learned that it's hard, and that's normal. The majority of people around you are not having sex every single day.
"They're busy being stressed at work, coordinating their kids' soccer schedules, and paying bills. Fitting sex into all of that is difficult, but, for us, it's necessary.
"Sex is what reminds us we're intimate partners and not just roommates in charge of keeping kids alive."
Secondly, the experiment allowed Brittany and her spouse to work out their sexual appetites, so they now both know the 'exact amount of sex we need to keep us happy in our marriage'.
"I no longer freak out if two weeks pass and we forget to have sex, because we work to connect in other ways," she went on. "Intimacy doesn't always mean penetration."
And lastly, Brittany realised that being 'secure in her relationship and feeling good about herself' made her a better 'wife, mother and woman'.
"I am not the best version of myself when I am insecure and panicky," she said, before jokingly adding: "I'm basically a walking vague relationship Facebook post. I am so much more focused when worrying about my sex life is off the table.
"It was never about anyone wanting me - it was about me wanting myself. And it only took an entire year of getting laid to figure that out."
Topics: Sex and Relationships, Lifestyle
Olivia Burke