What is addiction and is it necessary to fight it

Any addiction is something without which a person cannot imagine his life at the level of habit, and porn addiction is no exception. However, the question of whether it exists in principle is rather controversial, since not everyone, even scientists and doctors, agree that this is a real problem that prevents a person from living and functioning properly. Understand what porn addiction is from the point of view of science.

According to a study conducted in 2019, 3-6% of respondents are addicted to porn, which, in general, is not so much. At first glance, these people can be classified as having a mental illness, but it is worth making a reservation that porn addiction is not included in the ICD-10 and is not officially recognized as an addiction. Moreover, according to DSM-5, the world-famous guide to mental disorders, pornography and sexual addiction are not considered mental disorders. In other words, people who are addicted to watching pornographic videos are perfectly healthy.

The main reason lies in neurochemistry: pornography does activate pleasure circuits in the brain, however, according to experts, this does not mean that a person will necessarily become addicted to watching porn in the same way that he can become addicted, for example, to alcohol. Researchers attribute this to the fact that dependence on substances or alcohol leads to the inability to get the hormone dopamine in any other way, which cannot be said about porn addicts: on the contrary, they continue to function normally even without watching commercials - however, to refuse them anyway may not always.

This is because the habit of watching pornography is more closely associated with compulsive and compulsive behavior than has any resemblance to addiction. Moreover, some people tend to consider themselves addicted to pornography due to the fact that actually watching commercials is considered something taboo and in some ways abnormal. At the moment, sex education has not reached the level at which a person could calmly talk about his intimate life and not be afraid of condemnation from society - as a result, erotic entertainment is kept in secret, which is rarely discussed.

Nicole Prause, Ph.D., a neuroscientist who studies sexual psychophysiology and a practicing psychologist at Happier Living, states, “What people call porn addiction is basically a conflict of values that makes you think you are addicted.”

A major 2020 study published by the American Psychological Association found that people's cultural, moral, or religious beliefs can lead them to believe they are addicted to pornography, even if they don't actually watch that many videos. "If you think you're struggling with pornography, chances are you're really struggling with your personal value conflict around your sexual behavior, not with pornography itself," says Dr. Prause.

Despite the fact that many scientists do not consider the addiction to pornography something as destructive as any other addiction can be, this addiction can still lead to problems. How exactly is a difficult question, since the symptoms and possible consequences vary from person to person and depend on their individual characteristics. Here are a few examples where excessive video watching can really be a bad thing:

The person compares his sex life to pornography and evaluates his sexual experience as less than satisfactory.

Pornography causes conflict in relationships, and the partner seems less attractive.

A person takes risks by watching pornography: for example, doing it at work or in a public place.

A person begins to strive to get more and more pleasure from watching, because the videos that he watches become more extreme every time.

The person feels the need to stop watching the video, feels ashamed or frustrated after watching, but cannot stop.

A person is ready to spend money on pornography even to the detriment of a personal or family budget.

Pornography acts as a constant way to cope with stress, sadness, anxiety, insomnia and other mental health problems.

In other words, pornography only becomes destructive if, without it, you can't cope with the stress it has on your relationships and sex life. In such cases, it makes sense to think about how to stop doing this, or at least reduce the number of videos watched to a certain minimum.

Weigh the pros and cons

Assess how porn has affected your life. Do you see problems in your relationship with your partner? If so, then perhaps an honest and open conversation about what you do not like in sexual life, will help to establish contact, and the need to watch pornography will disappear by itself. Think about how positively watching a video affects you, and if you see that this is more of a minus than a plus, then most likely it should be abandoned.

Nicole Prawse believes that, as a rule, watching pornographic videos is not considered an independent problem, but rather a consequence of another disease or disorder - for example, depression or chronic stress. Chances are you won't have to do anything to stop watching the video if you can figure out the underlying problem that's bothering you.

In addition to realizing that you really want to quit pornography, distraction to other things can help. For example, doing what you love to do, chatting with loved ones, or any other kind of entertainment can help reduce stress levels, improve your mood in the same way, and sometimes even more than watching videos. Find a few activities that you don't mind making time for and make a schedule that will help you think less about pornography and do more of what you love.

You can contact a sex therapist or a psychotherapist who will help you deal with the causes of porn addiction. But it is even better to undergo a full examination, which may reveal underlying mental disorders. And if you start treating them, then you can not only get rid of addiction, but also improve the quality of your life in many other areas.