Life feels boring so my husband wants an open marriage

I'M A married woman in my early-40s and we don't have children by choice.

- Dear Coleen

My marriage has been stale for a few years now. Life used to be fun, we were close and sex was never an issue.

Now, though, things are strained and we've talked about relationship counselling and even divorce. I've never wanted to split up, just to get back what we had. If I'm honest, it's been difficult seeing our friends move on in life, having kids and being consumed by family life. They're always busy and I feel on the outside of things.

I don't regret choosing not to be a mother, but I've found it quite isolating too. My husband doesn't really get this and keeps saying I shouldn't compare my life to my friends' lives.

The latest idea from him is to open our marriage up to other people in a sexual sense. He thinks we might just need a break from each other to experience different things and people.