Courtney is a 52 year old woman and this is what she wrote to me today. "I agree with you on the subject of an older woman being with a younger man. Many people don't accept that this is a viable option. I myself resisted the temptation for some time before succumbing to the affections of a man 23 years my junior. I wound up marrying him and the problems that surfaced in our marriage were not due to our large age gap. His family members were more judgmental than mine about the age difference. After 6 years of being together, he divorced me and went back to his ex, who is only about 4 years younger than myself. I have been alone for nearly a year and have not found a man thus far that suits me. Age is a number. This is what I want men and women out there to understand," she says.

I think Courtney's case clearly proves that if a couple is compatible otherwise, age is merely a number. And if they are otherwise incompatible, being of the same age can actually be a problem sometimes - a mature partner can handle the situation better.

I have written previously that smelling your partner's sweat works. No wonder millions of men smell the armpits of their women and underarm odor may be a great aphrodisiac. That is also the idea behind pheromones and other substitutes that raise your libido or make you more attractive to others.

We now have research from University of California at Berkeley that proves that women may also want to smell their man's sweat. According to this study led by Claire Wyart, when women sniffed a chemical found in a man's sweat, they found their mood improved and they experienced "total physiological and sexual arousal." The longer they smelled, the effect went up, but just 15 minutes was enough to trigger it.

So when he comes home after a workout, ladies, don't push him to the bathroom; get close to him instead. You will have a much better night in the bedroom.

I wanted to share a story from one of our readers. She is just 20 years old and is dating a 43-year old man.

"We met through friends when I was 17. Everything was great for the first six months; in fact he chased me for three months and one day I felt completly head-over-heels in love! Then he started to change. He split up with me and slept with any woman he could find as well as me. He is my first ever love and boyfriend and however nasty he was to me, I held on! He would always tell me to move on and when I began to do so, he would beg me to come back! I will never give up on him because I know how hurt he was in his mariage and there is a beautiful man inside when he shows it! It has been nearly three years now and still it is the same situation - he loves me for a few weeks and then he doesn't even want to know where am I! I am unsure if this is because of his past and his scars, but I will always love hin and I am not quite ready to give up yet although I am starting to struggle to show him what he has and what he will lose. I don't want to give all my love to him and end up being so hurt that I will not love again! There's just something so special about him that I can't give up! I just want to be loved back and made to feel the way I try to make him feel every day! We are the best of friends and so similar! I love the fact that he is wise and can teach me things! There is no issue over the age gap. I believe that it adds to our relationship, but maybe if I were able to have met him 20 years ago, he might not have had so many issues and he would be more willing to give this relationship a real chance! I don't want children and he has already done that. I also don't want marriage - all I want is me and him and commitment! I believe we are more perfect because of our age difference because we are on the same path but at different stages of our lives! I know he wants to be loved and after all we have been through a lot. If we are still together, there must be some fate in that! I am just going to hold on and believe that one day he will realize what he has and I will be cherished at last!"

What do you think?

Is she delusional? Is this man abusing a young woman? Should she end the relationship and move on? Or will the man see her unconditional love and give her what she deserves? Has something like this happened to you before? What did you do? How did things turn out for you? Please let me know. If you have a blog, you can blog about it or you can simply share your thoughts here (no email address is needed).

Tips for abused women with no money

Maggie is an abusive relationship that is wearing her down. Plus, she does not see a way to get out of it easily. "My boyfriend is physically and emotionally abusive to me. I do work but make so little money that I cannot live independently. He provides a roof over my head and reminds me that every day. I am so miserable and I have to leave, but how?" (Related: How to leave an abusive relationship)

I am sorry to hear that you are going through such pain. Here are a few options to explore:

1. Ask a friend to help you move out and take you in for a couple of months as you try to build your life again.
2. No matter how you do it, try to cut down your expenses and definitely save some money each month - take another job if you can. Try to become independent as soon as possible and then leave this man. (Related: Tips for abused women)
   
3. If none of this is possible, just look into your phone book under women's shelters and give them a call. There are many organizations that support women like you - they maybe able to provide housing for you for a while as you try to become independent.