So he has to work real hard to 'turn me on,' so as to get me in the mood.

This really bothers him, because it makes him think that I am not interested in him. I have to keep telling him that that is not the problem.

No: it's just that most of the time I do not feel 'horny'. Is that a sickness? If not, what could be the reason for my low sex drive, and what can I do about it?

I did a hormone test, and it revealed that I have quite a lot of testosterone. How can that be when I don't have a high sex drive? Incidentally, I have just gone on the contraceptive injection, and my periods are a little irregular.

A Sorry to hear that you have been fretting. Can I just get the question of your contraceptive injection out of the way first? This jab has clearly nothing to do with your 'low sex drive' problem, since you have only recently started on it.

Irregular menses are extremely common in women who are on 'the shot', and it is possible that you may just have to accept them. But if they are troubling you a lot, a doc could give you some tablets to regulate them.

Now ... let us turn to the question of your sexual desire, which at the moment is clearly much less than your husband's.

I would like you to think about two important medical facts:

The average woman's sexual drive is rather less than the average man's. Admittedly, there are some couples who have much the same sexual drive as each other. And there are a few marriages in which the wife is really hot in her desires, but the husband is not! However, it remains true that as a general rule, females are somewhat less interested in sex than men are.

Just as some ladies are tall, and some are short, some women have a very high libido, while others have a low one.

Now, in your case, it is certain that, at the moment, your husband is much more sex-minded than you are. That is a perfectly normal situation, and does not mean that you have an illness!

Also, it is certain that, at the moment, you are not as sexually-inclined as certain other women - but (I can assure you) you have a lot more sex drive than some females do. After all, you obviously enjoy intercourse with your husband, when you get around to it. Believe it or not, there are actually quite a few wives who detest sexual intercourse.

Therefore, my medical opinion is that you are not abnormal or sick. There are some docs in the U.S. who would claim that you are suffering from 'Female Sexual Desire Disorder' or 'FSAD.' Personally, I think that this is largely an invented 'illness' - created to please the drug-manufacturing companies. It is claimed that no less than 43 per cent of U.S. women suffer from it - which seems to me to be just foolishness.

Now, you inquire about testosterone - which is the male hormone. Some of the aforementioned drug companies are trying to interest women in taking this hormone, because it is supposed to increase desire.

But as you rightly say, that does not make a lot of sense when we consider that you already have a fairly high testosterone - but you don't have an enormous amount of sexual desire.

If you wish to try a short course of testosterone, and you can find a doc who will prescribe it for you, I do not think it will do you any harm - though it can have side effects. It might even do you some good.

However, as a general rule it is the case that when a woman has a lower sex drive than her partner, and wishes to increase that drive, then the best answer is for her to try and change the way she is thinking. Psychologists call this 'the cognitive approach'.

So, I suggest that you try these simple ways o your thought processes a little:

This often bothers me, and my girlfriend. She thinks she is not pleasuring me enough, and fears that I will seek that pleasure elsewhere.

Doc, why can't I discharge in a more regular fashion - like two hours or less?

A Well, I must tell you that most guys do not take two hours to orgasm! Some discharge after only a few minutes, while more skilled and experienced lovers tend to continue for perhaps half an hour before they decide to climax.

As you realise, you are quite unusual in going on for SIX hours without reaching an orgasm at all. Why are you like this?

Well, the answer is that you actually have a condition which is in fact the third most common male sexual disorder. It is called 'Retarded Ejaculation'.

Guys who have it usually report that they can reach an orgasm through masturbation - or maybe through being manually stimulated by a woman. But they find it real difficult to discharge inside the vagina.

No one really knows why 'RE' occurs. But if you look it up on the Internet (where you will also find it referred to as 'Ejaculatory Incompetence' or 'Delayed Ejaculation'), you will see that it usually occurs in men who find it difficult to relinquish control. They tend to be in high-powered jobs, where they can manage and organise things. I note that you are an accountant!

So you have got to find a way of relaxing, giving up control, and letting yourself climax inside the vagina. Experts have identified two ways of doing this:

The behaviourist method. Over a period of months, the guy gradually learns to climax (using masturbation) nearer and nearer to his lady-partner, until eventually he can do it while touching her - and then finally inside her.

The Masters-Johnson method. The couple spend a lot of time with the guy lying flat on his back, and the woman kneeling astride him and stimulating him with her hands. Over many weeks, they progress to a point at which she can 'pop' him inside just before he discharges. This gets him accustomed to the notion that it is OK to orgasm in the vagina.

Ideally, you should have a therapist to help you with these approaches. If that is not possible, then be guided by the considerable amount of information which is now available on the 'net.

AThis is due to nerves. Talk to a doc, who will probably give you some stomach-calming medicine - and some good advice about how to relax.

ANo way! If a woman's nipple, which has previously been normal, starts turning itself inwards, that indicates something is wrong inside the breast.

This 'something' could be cancer - particularly as you are now getting into the age group where breast cancer starts becoming common.

Therefore, you must see a doc tomorrow. He will probably send you immediately to a specialist.