Jane Seymour opened up about how she was enjoying intimacy more than ever in her later years.
In an essay Seymour penned for Cosmopolitan, the 72-year-old actress shared why sex with her boyfriend John Zambetti, 73, is the best she has ever experienced. The "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" star revealed she was dating the musician in October.
"Sex right now is more wonderful and passionate than anything I ever remember because it is built on trust, love, and experience," Seymour wrote for the magazine's "Sex After 60" issue, published Wednesday.
She continued, "I now know myself and my body, and John has had his own experiences in his life — it's not like when you’re younger. I suppose among younger generations, people have sex first and then say, ‘Oh, by the way, hello. How do you do?’"
"The older I get, the more sex is built on emotional intimacy, on having shared the ups and downs of life with someone — our feelings, our joys, our sadness, our mutual passions, and desire."
The U.K. native also dispelled the idea that the desire for sex and physical intimacy stops with age.
"Your sex life doesn’t need to end at 60," Seymour wrote. "At the end of the day, everyone is looking for something that puts blood into a certain area.
She continued, "When you can figure that out, well, you’re going to be a happy camper. (And bonus: You’re not going to get pregnant, right?)"
Seymour explained that she realized intimacy "can also be self-serving" after the age of 60. "I’ve spoken with friends whose spouses have passed away and whose doctors have said, ‘Now it’s time for you to learn to be intimate with yourself,’" she recalled.
"Sure, loving touch changes according to what abilities you have physically as you age, but it’s certainly not something you give up just because you’re a certain age," Seymour wrote.
The former Bond girl pointed out that there is a stigma around the discussion of older individuals' sex lives and biological processes such as menopause. Seymour argued that some older people "give up" because of the stigma.
"They don’t just give up physically — they give up mentally and emotionally," she wrote. "My thinking is that life can only get better when you are open-minded and you listen to your body and to yourself."
"The crazy thing is, right now, I feel like I’m both experienced and 16 years old," Seymour added. "I truly feel sex and intimacy is better at my age than it ever was before. I actually mean that."
"And it took being single after my marriages to learn that I don’t have to disappear for sex and romance to click," she added.
In her essay, Seymour reflected on how she had spent the majority of her life either married or in a romantic partnership.
The actress has been married four times. She wed theater director Michael Attenborough in 1971, and they split in 1973. Seymour was married for one year to Geoffrey Planer from 1977 to 1978.
The "Somewhere in Time" star tied the knot with businessman David Flynn in 1981. The two welcomed daughter Katherine, now 42, and son Sean, now 38, before going their separate ways in 1992.
Seymour was married to actor-director James Keach from 1993 to 2015, and they share 28-year-old twins, Kristopher and John.
Prior to dating Zambetti, the Emmy Award winner was in a nine-year relationship with British film producer David Green, 74.
After her last relationship ended, Seymour wrote that she came to the realization she had a tendency to "vanish" into her relationships and give away her power to the men in her life.
"Dating someone was about ‘having it all’ — the career, the blended family, the marriage — not about romance and never about me," she shared.
Following her last breakup, Seymour recalled that she was "intent on being single and on my own."
"I went to Greece and rented a small yacht on the South Ionian Sea," she wrote. "I went to Iceland and climbed glaciers. I wanted to have what I call ‘experiential living’ with my kids while I’m able-bodied, vibrant, and happy."
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Seymour continued, "When I became determined to be intentionally single and just live, breathe, and be surrounded by the things that were most important to me, I was the most whole I’d ever been. For the first time in my life, I wasn’t a man’s half."
During that time, Zambetti told his son that he had spotted Seymour when she was at a nightclub with a couple of her friends. The two were later set up on a date with the help of their children and instantly connected.
"When John and I first met, he was encountering me as someone who was happily alone, not eagerly looking," she wrote. "I was at my happiest, surrounded by friends and family — literally, I think I had 16 of them in the house this one time, from my sisters and their husbands to cousins and even all the grandchildren."
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"John was immediately exposed to who I really am," Seymour explained. "And so despite my active disinterest in romance at the time, he still appreciated me and the privilege it was to see my life. I let him be part of the gang."
The actress explained that the bond between her and Zambetti is founded on more than just their physical attraction to each other.
"More important than our chemistry, there was a real fit in terms of our families, our culture, and the things we liked," Seymour wrote.
"I never imagined until now that I could be unashamedly who I am without having to worry about what somebody else thinks — especially at 72 when everyone’s got baggage and sometimes the joints are not performing or my back is flaring or something mildly arthritic happens," she joked.
"But it’s important to have a sense of humor about all of that too, because it’s life," Seymour added. "When people fit, they just fit. And when there is love and intimacy as well as a desire to find pleasure for your partner and pleasure for yourself and you can make that all happen in unison, it’s magic."
"Absolute magic, no matter what form it takes."
