I am feeling concerned about my inability to maintain long-term relationships. I was married at 22 and we were together for 13 years. I immediately started another relationship after the divorce that lasted for two years and fell apart, my doing mostly.

I have even found it difficult to want relationships with my family, which is a little unusual for me. In the divorce there was fault on both sides naturally. The two-year relationship felt more like love then the marriage by a long shot. Wrong partner for the marriage, and a ton a fear on my end during the second relationship in terms of why things didn’t work.

I have tried some dating, but even when there is some chemistry I feel unwilling to pursue anything further than the initial stages. I have two wonderful kids and I am very committed to them, and I want to become a better role model for relationships, but I seem to be unwilling and unable. I have gone to three or four therapists but I never make it past the first appointment. They just never seem to have what I am looking for to continue.

In the end I just don’t mind being alone. I have done the relationship thing so much in my life that I am just tired. I guess I am asking is if it’s alright for me to be like this. You know … is it normal or not normal? I also have almost no friends or hang out with anyone. This is strange because anyone who knows me at work would assume I have a large circle of friends and family because I am so outgoing. Either way, again, is this normal or should I be concerned about how little I want to interact with the human race?

– Maybe Lonely in Massachusetts