Porn Addiction Therapy Treatment
Porn addiction treatment is a multi-million dollar service in this country, but it pales in comparison to the pornography business that earns $97.06 billion annually. That’s more than the combine revenue of Microsoft, Google, Amazon, eBay, Yahoo!, Apple, Netflix and EarthLink. Of all websites,12% are pornographic, and 25% of internet searches are for pornography related material.
But looking at pornography on internet sites, magazines or movies is not the same as being a porn addict. It’s estimated that about 43% of internet users view pornography, but about 8% of the population has a porn addiction.
So if you’re wondering whether you’re dealing with a pornography addiction, here are some questions to ask yourself:
Reading down the above list of questions, two things are clear. First, an addiction to pornography is not much different than any other addiction. Second, it’s very clear that pornography can become a very real and debilitating addiction. It may involve struggles with compulsive masturbation, obsessive sexual thoughts or acts, and difficulty with an intimacy that begins to erode a person’s quality of life and relationships. And yet, there is no diagnosis code for a pornography addiction. Yes, that’s right, the medical profession doesn’t believe that anyone needs porn addiction treatment because they don’t identify it as a problem.
Yet millions of people seek pornography addiction help every year because they know it’s a very real problem. As with most addictions, a pornography addiction cuts across all beliefs and people groups in the population. Even half of those whose Christian beliefs oppose pornography will admit to a porn addiction, including about half of all pastors who struggle as well.
But if you think this is just a struggle for men, you’ll be surprised to know that 17% of women struggle with a pornography addiction, favoring chat rooms and erotica over images and video. Even more surprising is that of the adults who are addicted to pornography, 33% or men went on to having affairs compared to 80% of women. This may be because pornography typically objectifies sex and people, where as erotica is more about a relational connection that is sexually charged. That may say something about a large part of what drives pornography addiction and why it often escalates to involve in person encounters: porn addiction is mostly about the desire to connect and matter to others.
Three Focus Areas for Porn Addiction Treatment
Biological
Sexual release can trigger pleasure pathways in the brain similar to drug use. These neuro-pathways become reinforced and, over time, make the brain dependent on pornography as the primary source of pleasure. Over time, the frequency and intensity of the pornography use must increase for the same effect with a decrease in the ability to delay or stop.
Psychological
Porn addiction often can be fueled by other psychological struggles, such as OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder), bipolar disorder, personality disorders, etc. The flood of pleasure in the brain from pornography may be used to reduce anxiety and stress, or increase energy and motivation for someone struggling with depression.
Social
Whether it starts with the addiction or is the result of one, low self worth and social struggles are a large part of the porn addiction treatment. With increased porn use comes a decrease in real connection with others. Sometimes pornography use is the safest means for a person to feel loved, wanted, and adequate from another person, even if it is only fantasy.