Who are porn addicts? What are the signs of pornography addiction? Where can porn addicts get help? Is it possible to get over porn addiction? If you are looking for answers to these and more questions about porn addicts, this article is for you.
My name is Sean Galla, and I am an online support group facilitator with more than ten years of experience. Part of my work involves working with porn addicts in porn addiction support groups. This gives me a firsthand view of the effects pornography use can have on men and how being part of a support group can help beat the addictive behavior and enhance the members’ quality of life.
If you are looking for a place to learn, grow, and get help as a porn addict, this article has all the information to need. This article will cover everything about porn addicts and porn addiction.
Table of Contents:
What is Porn Addiction, and Who are Porn Addicts?
Porn addiction is often described as a compulsive need to watch porn despite it negatively affecting your life, and porn addicts are simply individuals struggling with this compulsive urge to watch porn.
Unlike other forms of addiction, health and psychiatric professionals and mental health organizations do not view compulsive porn viewing as a true addiction. However, behavioral sciences explain that the signs and symptoms are strikingly similar to those of other forms of behavioral addictions.
It is important to note that not everyone who watches porn is a porn addict. Porn addiction can be separated from having a keen porn habit based on the negative consequences of the behavior. Porn addicts spend a great amount of time viewing pornographic material. This affects their social, personal and professional life. A porn addict finds it hard to quit porn even when it harms their relationships, career, and well-being.
Ultimately, porn addiction affects different individuals differently. According to the American Psychological Association (APA), most mental health professionals disagree about the effects of porn addiction. Some believe that porn can benefit people’s sex life while offering a safe outlet for their sexual desires. Others believe that porn addiction damages relationships and can lead to unhealthy, destructive behavior while contributing to sexual aggression.
Porn addiction is a highly controversial topic, especially when trying to validate whether it is a real type of addiction. Skeptical experts cite that porn addiction cannot be an addiction since the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) under the American Psychiatric Association does not list sex addiction or porn addiction as a disorder.
Considered by most people as a type of behavioral addiction, porn addiction is characterized by obsessiveness with watching porn material. According to some experts, the functionality of a porn addict is different from that of a drug addict, while others cite it as the same, so it is controversial when it comes to validating it as an addiction.
Some porn addicts compare porn addiction to nicotine addiction. This is because porn addiction causes an obsession with sexual thoughts and habits and high dopamine when the need is met. The same way a nicotine addict gets cravings for a cigarette. Many men and women have lost control over their sexual addiction and identify as porn addicts.
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Types of Porn Addicts
Brain buzz addicts
This type of porn addict seeks the highest level of dopamine high from pornography material instead of getting it from human connections. Whenever they watch porn, their brains release a chemical that makes them feel good and may sometimes block their pain receptors. Over time, these addicts get used to desiring porn whenever they want this release.
Brain balancer addicts
This is a type of porn addict with chemical imbalances in their brain. This can be in the form of mental health issues and mental health conditions such as manic depression, cyclothymic disorder, or bipolar disorder. These types of mental health issues are closely associated with addiction and can cause porn addiction. They feel mentally better, relaxed, and even feel better whenever they watch and masturbate to porn.
Escape addicts
This is a type of addict with unaddressed traumas from the past that affect their self-esteem. This can be in the form of family trauma, sexual trauma, and personal trauma. They have likely experienced several negative events throughout their life, which causes them pain. Most people who have undergone negative experiences may turn to compulsive sexual behavior like viewing pornography and other negative behaviors like alcohol abuse, or alcohol addiction as coping mechanisms. Some people use porn as a numbing tool for these unaddressed issues.
Re-enactment addicts
These are porn addicts with unaddressed secret sexual traumas. These traumas cause many mental health issues, leading to risky sexual behavior, including over-indulgence in pornography. Watching porn and masturbating gives them power over their bodies, which makes them feel less vulnerable.
Avoidance addicts
This is an emotionally closed-off individual, mostly exhibiting signs of narcissistic behavior. They often blame their partners for the sexual dysfunction, relationship issues, and deteriorating sexual health in their relationship and turn to pornographic material to get sexual satisfaction. Since they can only get sexual pleasure from watching sexual images in porn, they often avoid having sexual activity with their loved ones.
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Signs That You are A Porn Addict
A study done by the University of Cambridge in 2014 found that watching porn affects the brain in the same way as drugs or any other substance addiction, and similarities to how an addict’s brain responds when they come across their drug of choice.
According to another study, 9% of addicts have tried to stop unsuccessfully. Porn addicts who quit experience the same withdrawal symptoms as drug users and alcoholics.
Since it is not recognized as a true addiction, one would have to exhibit a few signs to be termed a porn addict. some of the most common symptoms present in porn addicts include:
- Developing substance use disorders, hypersexual disorder, or increased substance use as coping mechanisms
- Inability to stop using porn or compulsive behaviors associated with porn, despite repeated attempts
- Spending a lot of time visiting porn sites
- Anger and hostility when asked to stop the use of pornography
- Cravings to view porn
- Lack of self-control even in porn-free places like work
- Sexual Dysfunction in relationships
- Development of mental health disorders like anxiety or depression
- Abandoning real-life social activities to use porn
- Keeping all or part of one’s porn use secret from loved ones
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How Porn Addicts Can Get Over Porn Addiction
If you think you are addicted to porn, you can give up porn without needing professional treatment programs.
Some steps you can follow to quit porn on your own include:
Engage in new activities
Since you will have a lot of free time on your hands, engaging in new activities is an ideal coping mechanism to keep your mind from thinking about porn. You can replace the habit with healthier habits to keep your mind and body engaged. This can include exercising, spending more time with your loved ones, and taking on other activities that can trigger the dopamine effect.
Get rid of porn access and material
The first thing you need to do is get rid of all your porn material and make it harder to access it. This includes blocking and deleting all online porn addiction sites on all your devices and setting filters on your social media. You can even install a porn blocker on your devices and have someone else put a password for it. This will make it harder for you to access online porn.
Avoid your triggers
You need to avoid any situation that triggers your problematic pornography use. For instance, avoid logging into your computer when you are most likely to watch porn. Also, it helps to plan how to cop whenever you ate triggered.
Other Porn Addiction Treatment Options for Porn Addicts
If you find it hard to quit pornography on your own, you should consider seeking healthcare medical advice or professional help. Porn addiction is treated the same way sexual addiction is treated. Treatment options can include medication, therapy, and being part of self-help groups.
- Acceptance and commitment therapy is a form of CBT that emphasizes acceptance of your thoughts and urges and a commitment to actions that are more in line with other values.
- CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) – is a type of talk therapy or psychotherapy where a mental health professional identifies the problem areas in your life causing the addiction and finds ways to help you overcome them.
- Psychodynamic psychotherapy – focuses on becoming more aware of your unconscious thoughts and behaviors, learning about your motivations, and resolving conflicts.
In some cases, the mental health professional can recommend using medications as part of the treatment plan to control the brain cells likely causing the obsessive actions and thoughts.
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Join a support group
There are numerous online programs for porn addicts. These online spaces offer a community to meet other like-minded individuals going through the same struggles as you.
If you are a man looking for a reliable online support group for porn addiction, MensGroup can offer all the help you need.
About MensGroup
Men’s Group is a men-only online support group that offers peer support to any male looking to connect with others as they fight various issues, including porn addiction. At Mensgroup.com, men can talk about their triggers, shortcoming, and failures in their recovery process.
MensGroup is also a place where you can find peer support groups for different physical health and mental health issues. This is a forum for mutual acceptance, self-discovery, and understanding amongst peers. Participants can join chat rooms or meet with other porn addicts through video calls. With Men’s Group, you do not have to go through life alone.
Conclusion
Like other addicts, porn addicts require behavioral therapy and guidance to recover. If you are a male porn addict, joining a men’s support group like mensgroup.com is an important step towards finding healing and recovery from this addiction. Doing it with others like you calls you to be accountable, which improves your chances of making the change you seek.
*Sources: 1. The Brain’s of Porn Addicts 2. What to know about porn addiction 3. Porn Addiction 4. Pornography Facts and Statistics 5. Top Five Warning Signs of Internet Pornography Addiction
