At first, it seems harmless. You go online, type in some arousing search terms, and you have instant gratification. Next thing you know, you’re searching for porn again, in an attempt to repeat that feeling. Before long, it starts consuming your thoughts and actions.
Eventually, your search terms get more extreme and perhaps even violent. As a result, you begin to rationalize your actions. After all, you may believe pornography is harmless. Likewise, you may think it’s a helpful alternative to satisfying your high libido. Somewhere, in the back of your mind, however, you begin to wonder why it is you’re keeping it a secret. Likewise, you feel defensive when your partner expresses concern about your new behaviors. In the back of your mind, you may also begin asking yourself, “Do I have a porn addiction? What should I do?”.
In this article, we’ll give you some ideas to help you determine if you might have a porn addiction. We’ll also address why curing your own addiction is not likely to be successful.
Do I have a porn addiction?
It is often hard for men to determine if they have a porn addiction. As you begin to assess your situation, it may be helpful to understand what addiction can feel and look like.
Here are a few scenarios that can indicate you have a porn addiction.
It’s been three days since you last looked at your favorite porn site online. Yet thoughts of your favorite porn sites are consuming your day. Likewise, you have intense cravings to peek at them. Eventually, you decide to sneak away from your partner and go online to satisfy the craving. Despite trying to stop thinking about pornography on your own, you can’t.
It’s Saturday morning, and your partner tries to initiate an intimate experience with you. However, you’re not interested in her simplistic approach. Furthermore, you realize you need more than usual foreplay for arousal. You find the whole ordeal frustrating. As a result, you make excuses about why you don’t want to or can’t reciprocate her actions. In all honesty, however, looking at porn feels better than actual sex with your partner.
You’re at work, with a task list that seems to be piling higher, but your cravings are making it hard to focus on work. Viewing one video led to another, and you just realized you lost three hours. Furthermore, the videos are getting more extreme. Perhaps you’ve even developed an interest in a new sexual fetish. As time passes, you realize you’ve lost track of how much money or how many hours you’ve spent on porn.
If any of these situations sound familiar, you might have a porn addiction.
Can You Cure a Porn Addiction on Your Own or Do You Need Help?
Access to pornography has never been easier. If you have a persistent craving for porn, you may be addicted. Likewise, if it’s starting to impact other areas of your life negatively, you may have developed a porn addiction.
Many men feel as if they can quit looking at porn whenever they’re ready. Likewise, they believe they can simply walk away; thus, curing their addiction. The truth is porn addiction can change the way your brain works. Furthermore, porn affects the way you view your relationships and the way you see yourself.
Porn addiction often requires deep-rooted treatment to reverse the damage caused by pornography. As a result, it is very uncommon for a man to heal or cure himself of his own porn addiction.
If you feel like you may have an addiction looming, we’re here for you. At Fort Worth Counseling & Intervention, a diagnosis and support may be what you need to start your healing process. We are here to help.
