Addicted To Pornography Online

[Deleted member 1606]

Right, which is why part of the clinical definition is an external substance.

But again, there's the colloquial definition too.

 

[anthony]

Just looked for a clinical insight to this, and it exists. I believe the next rollout, DSM V will contain more related to the Internet and its issues surrounding this.

Diagnostic criteria for 302.82 Voyeurism

A. Over a period of at least 6 months, recurrent, intense sexually arousing fantasies, sexual urges, or behaviors involving the act of observing an unsuspecting person who is naked, in the process of disrobing, or engaging in sexual activity.

B. The person has acted on these urges, or the sexual urges or fantasies cause marked distress or interpersonal difficulty.

Basically, if you masturbate to porn online to the point where it is disruptive of your life, you will find you will fit this. DSM V I believe will be more specific to also contain the specifics surrounding the WWW in more contexts and more diagnosis from the evidence currently being gathered and fed back.

 

[Nicolette]

Just wondering if its me or the chronic ptsd making me feel i need to!

While the debate at hand is interesting....isn't this the question and not clinical versus colloquial or definitions?

 

[anthony]

Thinking about it... even the above could be hard pressed for an actual diagnosis currently until the DSM V rollout.

 

[TLight]

For myself, I've enjoyed porn in intimate relationships where it has enhanced our experience.
However, I do think the prevalance of it in our society is incredably damaging to many people and many relationships......particularly the young women who are in the industry..........Sex is sacred people.......it is to be shared by two loving committed individuals and what they choose to allow in their sex life must be agreed upon.

I am certain that several of the women in the porn industry are sexual abuse survivors and sex is being reduced to an animalistic behavior that I'm certain, can be detrimental to many men out there. Especially with the new advent of violence in these films, violence against women as a means of turning on is becoming almost acceptable.

I fear for our young people. I wish for a time when we could go back to human sexuality being a sacred act that is shared under the umbrella of love and respect. These films show no love nor respect that I can find....however, they do serve as a stimulate.........hence, a drug, that can have serious repercussions on our society and how we treat each other. There are too many perverts out there and this is just creating and condoning their behavior.

That said; as I mentioned, I have used them in relationships in moderation and experimentation. I have never relied upon them.........I'd rather let those wonderful dreams serve that purpose and wake up and pleasure my mate.
If I was dating someone who had a bunch of porn sites in his history (and I have checked this out with my new interest)........I must say I would turn and run. This would be an indication to me that he is more interested in a sexual object than a relationship.........which is very damaging to me as a sexual abuse survivor...........I would be triggered constantly and never be able to give him my trust, hence might as well leave.

 

[TLight]

I fear for our young women and their self esteem these days. I fear for my nieces.......guys........please let young women know that they are so much more than just their bodies.
Our whole society is telling them they are just a piece of ass..........it is so disheartening and damaging.

 

[TLight]

ps. PTSD related........I know I masturbated a lot during certain times in my life........I believe it is a way of numbing and distracting oneself from the internal torment of PTSD..........
Take a walk in nature to balance it out........distracts and numbs and lets us think of the miracle of creation. Much healthier.

 

[tardis]

Just wondering if its me or the chronic ptsd making me feel i need to!

I reckon its not just you, it's the PTSD. Its common to have an addiction in PTSD, to avoid the pain of your trauma. Some use drugs and alcohol, I personally have a tendency to be a workaholic, my girlfriend was addicted to the computer, and so on. Not sure this will work for you, but my girlfriend found that after she worked on her trauma for several months, her computer addiction ceased almost completely.

 

[cragger65]

Karma, you are definately wise on the topic. Myself, I never construed the term "addiction" as being washing hands of responsibility. I wasn't aware of this connotation. Perhaps it is my layman's understanding of the terms. Gambling is likewise, technically not an addiction then? They always paint it in these terms in commercial ads, makes the terminology a little confusing.

 

[TLight]

I think the 'addiction' thing comes down to whether or not something is negatively impacting your ability to function or having a negative impact on the quality of your relationships.........and yes, the endorphins released would qualify, for me at least, as chemically impacting your brain chemistry.

Moderation is key..........simple as that. However, I think the direction and emphasis in our culture on pornography as an industry is, overall, destructive in its extremity. The extremes of anything is destructive. Politics, TV, gambling, sex........absolutely anything.......our society unfortunately uses the extremes as a way of coping with stress and unhappiness instead of making the choices necessary to change the root of the problem.

The side effect of modern life perhaps........unfortunate.

 

[midi]

Yeah, I've always taken 'addiction' to mean doing something to the point that it interferes with other parts of your life. My drinking, drugs, eating, etc... all got in the way of my life! These are my addictions and I take full responsibility for them.

It's really cool that Chief is questioning the porn use and how it affects other aspects of life.

 

[Grama-Herc]

I do not mean to be a prude or rain on anyones parade, but what the hell does any of this have to do with PTSD and why has it been allowed on this site. I am very disappointed in you Anthony for allowing this to continue.