Porn addiction isn’t a thing. It’s made-up bullshit by people that buy into Judeo-Christian morality regarding sexual “purity”. There are reasons that it didn’t make it into DSM-V, and won’t make it into DSM-VI either. The porn and masturbation isn’t the problem, it’s how people feel about it, and how they reconcile it with their own beliefs in morality, which is not even remotely the same as being addicted to opiates or nicotine.
The masturbation definitely is not the problem, the porn might be. It just gives a wrong picture of intimacy and sex to inexperienced teenagers.
And some frankly bonkers ideas about what real sex is like.
But when I think about my youth in pre-internet days, when you relied on a trucker flinging his jazz mag into the bushes and being lucky enough to find it before the slugs, I’m not sure learning about real sex was any easier then.
You can only be physically addicted to certain substances but you can be mentally addicted to anything.
You mean, you haven’t met someone with a mental addiction yet.
But — you are technically correct, indeed.
In ICD 10 the disorders that are commonly regarded as mental addictions are classified not as addiction, but as eating disorders, habit and impulse disorders and disorders of sexual preference. Don’t know whether I missed any.
BTW, Substance-related addiction is classified as mental and behaviour disorder due to psychoactive use. So, technically, “addiction” does not exist at all.
Even if you don’t call it an addiction, I still consume an unhealthy amount of porn imo. I worry that I wouldn’t be able to get it up for a real person, not that it matters cause I’m too mentally screwed up to try hooking up or dating.
You think you consume an unhealthy amount of pornography, because that’s the message that you’re hearing from religiously-motivated sources. (Groups like “Fight The New Drug” are funded and staffed by Mormons, which meets all the criteria for a high-demand religion, AKA cult.) It’s the way that you conceptualize your use of pornography, rather than your consumption of pornography, that is the problem. When you compare self-described “porn addicts” to average people that do not label themselves as addicts, their consumption is most typically either identical, or slightly below average.
Your anxieties about “[not] be[ing] able to get it up for a real person” are what is likely to cause problems because that’s going to interfere with your arousal levels.
Surprisingly, porn use has damages outside of just puritanical BS taboo! Instant gratification, a decrease in drive to meet your needs in other ways, unhealthy associations with sex (because that actually exists outside of puritanical views, believe it or not), some pretty gnarly effects around the whole dopamine release and reward seeking thing…
Bruh I haven’t been brainwashed by religious messaging, I have an archive of like 20 gbs of super niche fetish shit because I’ve essentially over the past decade shifted what I consider normal way into the deep end. I’m not saying that porn addiction is a thing, just saying that overconsumption can still be a problem.
Start slow by starting to masturbate before turning on porn, remembering the last porn you watched. Slowly increase the amount of time before turning on porn. Then over time eventually you might be able to get off entirely by remembering what you’ve seen before. You can use that skill any time when with someone.
Porn addiction isn’t a thing. People with addictive personalities always out here trying to blame whatever they are hyperfocusing on, instead of getting some therapy and addressing their neurodivergency.
True. There is no chemical part of porn itself to make it “addictive.” Orgasm just releases dopamine that feels good.
If you are addicted to meth, it’s not easy to give it up because you are chemically addicted to it.
If you are “addicted” to porn, it’s moderately easy to give up, if you have self control
There are two kinds of addiction, physiological and psychological. Addictive substances are physiologically addictive because of how the effect they have on the brain and body, but that doesn’t mean you can’t form a physiological dependence on something and have similar issues not “using”.
You will not have withdrawal effects from not jacking off. Urge to do it is not a withdrawal effect and can be overcome with self-control. With actual withdrawal symptoms, they can be extremely severe in some cases, even deadly. If you are addicted to drugs, you need to seek psychological help to overcome it, not with porn addiction
But you just stated yourself, porn, which leads to an orgasm usually, leads to dopamine release.
Dopamine release feels good.
Big dumb animal brain associates porn with feeling good.
Brain wants to feel good, brain watches porn.
We’re all animals, we’re all conditioned. If you want to say technically there’s no addiction mechanism for porn itself, sure whatever, but that’s not actually very useful is it? Just because the addictive (replace it with ‘conditioned to seek’ if you want) bit is a little downstream from the porn itself doesn’t mean the porn itself isn’t the problem.
Also, if self control was so fuckin easy, you wouldn’t have anyone with any real problems, they’d just self control them all into solved.
I never said self-control itself is easy, giving up watching porn once you have it, is.
You don’t have withdrawal symptoms from not jacking off unless you count craving to masturbate as one. The craving is felt by literary anyone who gets horny.
Drugs, on the other hand, can have very severe withdrawal symptoms that require the person to seek help and cure his addiction.
Not to mention, you get dopamine from many things. If we treat all of them as severely as actual addictions, the word itself just loses all its meaning.
This is a refreshing comment thread compared to reddit these days. You just get shouted at saying something like this. There are chemically addictive things and then there are things that are addictive and habit forming because they are fun. Totally separate things. One takes self control, one takes outside help.
Accurrate comic though minus the being able to go over a week part!
The problem is, that line of thought isn’t very useful conditioning is a thing very much so, and you can absolutely be addicted to the dopamine release. Just because it’s downstream doesn’t mean the porn isn’t the ultimate addictor.
You can also self control your way out of addictive substances like nicotine. Only a scant few need medical intervention. Unless you’re going to tell me heroin and alcohol are the only actually addictive substances that exiat. It’s INCREDIBLY reductive to reduce anything that doesn’t have a specific chemical addiction mechanism to “not an addiction get help lol”. Yes, get help. Probably from these things called addiction therapists, that deal with things like porn addiction and gambling addiction.
Those addictions are only addictive because of underlying issues.
Fix those issues, and you will not be addicted anymore.
I think I’m confused here. Would it not be true that porn addiction is a thing, just that porn isn’t the root cause of it? Like, addictive personalities result in addictions but they have to be addicted to something and that addiction is the {insert vice here} addiction.
Gambling addiction, porn addictions, gaming addictions etc. Just because the personality is the cause I thought it would still be helpful to get them away from whatever they hyperfocus on in order to start working of the addictive traits.
I have a friend who isn’t addicted to cigarettes and only smokes with buddies but never alone or with me. And me who isn’t addicted to alcohol but only drinks if really good friends want to go out and get a bit (been years now but used to be months)
I would say that’s not addiction at all, that’s just partaking in things that aren’t good for you in a social setting. Addiction is when it takes over your life isn’t it?
Genuine question, it’s hard to convey curiosity over sarcasm on the internet.
If it just takes a month to break, it’s not an addiction. It’s a habit.
Really hate the way that the word addiction is watered down by people who just look at porn a lot.
I’d like to agree with you, but I don’t think there are fixed periods where stopping something turns it from being addiction into habit.
Addiction is an inability to stop using a substance or engaging in a behavior even though it may cause psychological or physical harm.
I think porn can come within that definition, just as much as smoking or drinking can be called a habit.
And I’m saying that what’s described in the OP is a habit, not an addiction.
‘Addiction’ is very overused when it comes to porn because people don’t have any concept of what addiction actually is. Half the time the harm doesn’t come from looking at porn, it comes from the purity culture that we’re inundated with in western society. Being abused by puritanical ideology does not make looking at porn an addiction. Neither does having a strong sex drive that makes us want to engage with sexual content.
And I’m saying that what’s described in the OP is a habit, not an addiction.
‘Addiction’ is very overused when it comes to porn because people don’t have any concept of what addiction actually is. Half the time the harm doesn’t come from looking at porn, it comes from the purity culture that we’re inundated with in western society. Being abused by puritanical ideology does not make looking at porn an addiction. Neither does having a strong sex drive that makes us want to engage with sexual content.
Porn addiction is real, and watching porn can have more harm than just puritanical bullshit. Most people that I’ve watched looking at porn don’t just find a video a watch it start to finish. They watch multiple videos, fast forwarding to their favorite parts. Delayed gratification is good for you. Also, porn doesn’t accurately depict what sex is like. It can give you fucked up expectations of what sex should be.
If you watch so much porn that you can’t have an orgasm without watching it, if you are only aroused by porn that can’t exist in real life, if you stop having sex with a partner to instead only masturbate to porn, if you find yourself constantly watching porn even at inappropriate times, if the amount of porn you watch decreases your quality of life… That’s addiction.
I think that masturbating is healthy and good for human sexuality, but I think a lot of people could benefit from masturbating differently. Try reading or using your imagination or even just masturbating meditatively, focusing on sensations.
Dude porn addiction is such a real thing. The damage comes in your relationship. Not being able to stop watching porn causes all kinds of issues in your day to day life including fatigue and erectile issues.
Didn’t take me more than a month to quit smoking, is that just a habit rather than a real addiction in your eyes?
You’re going to have a tough time arguing that compulsive behavior that the individual has difficulty stopping and often performs when they otherwise didn’t intend to isn’t addiction, just because they found a way to stop.
Again, I’m not saying porn addiction doesn’t exist.
I’m saying that the use of ‘addiction’ with porn is extremely overused and most people who claim to be addicted aren’t.
And for what it’s worth, I quit smoking after three years of up to 2 packs a day in a single day. Just made the decision and never craved them again. Every body handles substance dependencies differently. But porn addiction is different and the comparison is apples and oranges.
Masturbating is good for you. Stop self harming.
I’m not taking a side, but unless there’s some new evidence, virtually every study I’ve seen is filled with little to no evidence this is true and sums up with something to the effect of ‘results uncertain, more research needed’.
I’m glad you mentioned reasonable levels because like with anything, it can be harmful if done too often.
There haven’t been any studies to conclusively prove that this is the case but some correlation shows that nocturnal emmisions are lower in men who masturbate more. Probably more than likely this guy would have nutted in his sleep during that month of no fap.
Literally prostate cancer research determines a 20% decrease in risk when ejaculating 21 times a month.
This isn’t 2016 anymore when the research was still going on.
That citation abstract very clearly says “could link” prostate cancer and biological processes and “may lower” prostate cancer risk, it’s definitely not as clear cut as you’re making it sound. The paper itself isn’t even confident about the statements it’s making
Let’s not start the cult of /r/nofap here. And no, you are not suddenly more charismatic and confident. You are just not reeking of cum all the time, something achievable with regular showers as well.
No fap is retarded, but watching less porn isn’t. You can do pretty much anything you can imagine to excess.
The no fap community is definitely overexxagarating the pros of not masturbating, but in it’s core they are supporting a healthy cause. Never been an r/nofap guys but they definitely helped me a bit to stop my porn addiction.
Anything that practices self-control and self-discipline is usually a good thing.