Sex and pornography addiction

What is sex and pornography addiction?

Sex addiction, also called compulsive sexual behaviour, is a repeated pattern of sexual fantasies, urges and behaviours that the person feels they cannot control and that they keep up despite the distress and the negative consequences. Pornography addiction is one of its most common forms, made easier by its accessibility and its private nature.

It is not defined by the amount of desire or by any specific practices, but by the loss of control and by the use of sexuality as a way to escape from unpleasant emotions such as anxiety, emptiness or loneliness. The behaviour stops being experienced as pleasure and starts to feel like a need.

Symptoms and warning signs

Sex addiction is often experienced with a great deal of shame and in secret, which makes asking for help difficult. These are some common signs.

• Spending a lot of time on fantasies, pornography or sexual behaviour.
• Feeling unable to control the urge despite trying.
• Using sex or pornography to relieve stress or distress.
• Continuing the behaviour despite its consequences.
• Needing increasingly intense or novel stimuli.
• Feeling guilt or emptiness after the behaviour.

Causes

Compulsive sexual behaviour does not have a single cause. It usually combines biological factors related to the reward system and impulse control with psychological factors such as anxiety, depression, low self-esteem or difficult emotional and sexual experiences in the past.

In the case of pornography, its immediate, free and anonymous availability makes a consumption that can escalate over time easier. Very often sexuality becomes a way to numb emotions that the person does not know how to manage in any other way.

Consequences

The consequences affect above all the emotional and relational sphere. Guilt, shame, anxiety and a strong loss of self-esteem are common, along with the feeling of leading a double life.

Within a relationship, the secrecy and the behaviour can lead to breakups and loss of trust. Intensive pornography use is also associated with problems of desire and sexual response in real relationships, as well as with difficulties concentrating and interference at work.

Treatment at Reconectar

At Reconectar we treat sex and pornography addiction with an outpatient, individual and personalised approach in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, in a space of complete respect and free of judgement. Confidentiality is absolute.

We work with cognitive therapy to understand which emotions and situations trigger the behaviour, and with motivational techniques that reinforce change. The goal is not to repress sexuality, but to regain control and build a healthy, free experience that is consistent with the person's values. We also provide tools to manage distress in another way and, where appropriate, to rebuild trust within a relationship.