My husband and I are going through our third deployment right now. He just came home from Iraq on R&R a few weeks ago. As for the sex, we didn't wait. I'm sorry, but I too have read in deployment books that you should wait. Personally, I think that's a load of crap. My husband and I had sex as soon as we walked in the door coming home from the airport (yes even a few weeks ago on his leave). He didn't want to wait, I didn't want to wait either. We love each other, missed each other so much, and we wanted it so bad. So why wait? It's true that they do need some time to adjust to life at home and normal daily activities. But that really applies more to home responsibilities, seeing people for the first time again, etc. Not sex and reconnecting with your spouse. I think waiting could be really harmful for your marriage, to be honest. Of course he should do things when he's ready, but I guarantee he'll be ready for sex, and he would probably be hurt if you wanted to wait despite that. I mean, come on, this is what these guys think about to get them through deployments. They look forward to coming home to their wives- sex, reconnecting, etc. We didn't wait. It's always been a great experience, and we've been happy with that. As for the differences, basically, expect it to be shorter, but expect it to be better, and expect it to mean more. Obviously he hasn't had sex in a long time, so expect it to be short. However post deployment sex is also amazing. There is a big rush of a connection, a lot of emotion, and it just plain feels better. Congrats on getting your hubby back soon! I get mine back for good from the sandbox in three months!
