How to stop porn addiction?
The internet is filled with adult content, but some of it is problematic. What you see on the internet might look harmless and family-friendly, but that doesn’t mean that it’s free from bad influences. There are plenty of websites where you can find anything from porn to rape pornography. If it’s not illegal to view, it’s probably available for viewing on these sites.
If you’re addicted to watching adult content, there are several things you can do to get yourself back into a healthier lifestyle. Check out the following article for more information on how to stop watching porn.
The idea of quitting porn is very popular indeed, but so is the fact that not many people are able to do that successfully.
It has been proven now scientifically that pornography addiction is a serious form of addiction and needs recovery to get back to life. There are many who are sceptical about addiction and recovery.
According to research, around the world, 28,258 users are viewing pornography every second. While there’s nothing innately wrong with that, it’s pornography’s high tendency to form an addiction that is concerning. This could lead to a large percentage of young adults that have issues including,
- Erectile Dysfunction
- Insomnia
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Loneliness
- Difficulty forming and maintaining relationships
Research shows that 88% of scenes in porn films contain acts of physical aggression. 49% of scenes contain verbal aggression. It’s alarming what children and young adults are being exposed to. Their minds are young and impressionable, and they are being desensitized to content that promotes violence and rape.
Having so many side effects and negative impacts on society, unfortunately, many claim that it is difficult to quit porn. Porn is considered to be powerfully addictive to quit. We give you an exhaustive list of why quitting porn is difficult and as well as the benefits of quitting porn.
Why is it so Difficult to Quit Porn – The 3 Main Factors
Having a clear understanding about where the difficulty arises is pretty important. It’s the first step you must take if you’re serious about quitting porn.
If you’re watching adult content on the internet and you want to stop, there are a few things you can do. First, recognize that you are. If you’re drinking alcohol or smoking cigarettes, you’re not looking at the world through infantile eyes.
You know what you see. If you’re the same age or in the same situation as the people you’re communicating with online, you know what they’re seeing. Second, set healthy boundaries. If you’re drinking alcohol or smoking cigarettes, you’re not looking at the world through infantile eyes.
Porn Addiction is Different
There are several factors that differentiate porn addiction from other addictions. Smoking, alcoholism, or drugs usually have very clear signs. But pornography could be silently eating away at individuals without raising any alarm bells in the meanwhile.
Most young adults don’t even think they have a problem in the first place. They believe that viewing aggressive, morbid porn is “normal” and not a cause for concern. Most will rarely open up about their problem to others.
They tend to think that porn is just something that gives them a ‘high’ and can easily stimulate sex drive and prevent sexual addiction. But studies show that porn has a negative impact on brain and severe addiction can cause several mental health disorders.
This leads to a lack of social aid in the form of a support system. This can leave users feeling more alone than ever. In most societies it is taboo to even speak about sex, leave alone sexual content on the internet.
Considering how easy it is to access pornography today, it’s no surprise just how common and widespread it’s abuse is. Anybody with an internet connection is able to access millions of pornographic websites within seconds. This means the barrier to entry is nearly non-existent.
The diagnosis and addiction treatment is very much needed similar to the other addictions. There are specified set of tests and analysis to provide the report of diagnosis and symptoms.
This can be a huge roadblock for someone actively trying to quit the debilitating habit. Browsers have incognito modes that do not store browsing history. This means you have no concrete method of visualizing and quantifying the amount of content consumed.
Porn can have severe effects on an individual’s relationships leading to one becoming distant from their partner. This can eventually lead to feelings of detachment and resentment in a relationship.
Such strain and distress can then lead to further separation and loneliness, creating a vicious cycle of porn abuse.
3 Reasons why Quitting Porn is so Difficult
#1 Porn addiction and Drugs have Similar Effects
Scientific literature is clear on this. This meticulous study by T Love, C Laier, M Brand, L Hatch, R Hajela makes that all clear.
At the base level, porn addiction is not much different from drug addiction. In fact, they both trigger a response from the brain’s natural reward system. Our brains produce two hormones namely dopamine and serotonin.
They are responsible for making us feel good, regulating our eating and sleeping patterns. They make sure we do things that give us pleasure. Naturally, our brains produce dopamine and serotonin every time we eat good tasting food, rest well, and have sex.
Porn addiction can cause more harmful effects than the substance abuse. One must keep in mind that this is a serious disorder.
They are produced in specific quantities at specific times so that we remain healthy and carry out life functions appropriately.
This is a reason why an otherwise effective practice such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) falls short in helping quit porn.
#2 Drugs and Porn Mess with the Brain’s Reward System
Drugs like cocaine and methamphetamine trick the brain’s reward system. They cause it to produce an excess of dopamine and serotonin even when it is completely unwarranted.
This may seem like a great thing at first. Reason being it allows us to feel happy and energetic without needing to earn it. Unfortunately, this can soon lead to severe problems and addiction.
Eventually, the drug user is unable to survive day to day life. He/She gets her to fix of dopamine through drugs. This results in loss of appetite, loss of sleep, severe anxiety, overall depression, and a feeling of hopelessness.
Studies have repeatedly shown that it leads to a loss of motivation to do well at school. This leads to lower grades and a lack of interest in forming social circles, resulting in loneliness and isolation. The symptoms that are mentioned now wh
Pornography works in much of the same way. It hijacks your sense of pleasure giving you bursts of dopamine unnaturally. The first step to recovery is to accept that there is a problem, it may be out of your control.
We recommend speaking to someone at home, at school, or seeking professional help to guide you through the process of quitting porn. Replacing watching porn with other activities such as exercise like running, weight training and swimming, can be beneficial to you.
Seeking professional help might make you understand the severity and impact of what is going on in the mind. This will indeed help you to come out of the addiction with an intent to lead a productive life.
Breaking the cycle and rewiring the brain to crave new sources of stimulation.
#3 Stuck in one Environment for Extended Periods of Time
A general notion in case of addiction is to be stuck in one enviroment for long periods of time. Many people who’ve been addicted to substances have found a lot of success in quitting as they changed their environments. This works in the same way for porn addiction, as the problem roots from the brain itself.
But, what to do in a situation of quarantine, wherever we can’t go wherever we want, whenever we want. And that can make things go south very easily. Urges are likely to be more intense than usual, and add to that the uncertainty of the entire situation. It’s as unfavorable as a situation can get for a person.
Fortunately, if you approach the situation methodically with the intent of quitting porn, then there is hope for you. You can refer to the 6 steps right here, that’ll help you cope with the problem a lot more effectively.
The Benefits of coming out of porn addiction
Porn may be an easy way to get a quick dopamine fix, but with anything in life, there are adverse effects that we need to be aware of.
As we’ve already discussed, porn literally changes the way your mind functions and modifies your behaviours negatively. When you eventually quit porn, you’ll be able to enjoy great benefits, some of which are listed below –
#1 You’ll Have your Freedom Back
Imagine if you no longer had to watch pornography and you were not hooked to it in any way. If you quit watching porn immediately, all of this is within your reach. You will soon be able to kick the habit, and once you do, you won’t feel the need to indulge in it in order to be happy.
It will mean that you won’t be bound by a habit anymore, and you’ll be able to enjoy the freedom that comes with it. You’ll finally be free to live your life normally after you’ve broken free of the pornographic industry’s shackles.
#2 Your Dopamine Levels will Return to Normal
When you watch porn, your dopamine levels are spiked in order to give you an artificial feeling of happiness. I say artificial because the women in the videos are actors, and the actions they perform are scripted. It gives you a somewhat fake idea of what love and relationships are like.
It can misdirect you into a life of misogyny and lack of commitment to your partner, and this can have long-lasting effects on your psychological thought processes.
Once you quit porn, you’ll be able to get your dopamine levels back to normal and stop being overstimulated. Along with this, your sleep patterns and appetite will return to normal. It’s great that most of the damage that porn does is reversible, but it’s important that you approach quitting porn right away so that you can begin enjoying the benefits sooner.
#3 You’ll Prevent Doing any Long-term Physical Damage
The reasons to quit porn aren’t purely ethical or moral either. It’s important to understand that pornography can have serious physical consequences on your body that you might not even notice until its too late.
Porn is infamous for causing sexual problems like premature ejaculation and erectile dysfunction in men. Its effects have been well documented as predominantly negative. Personally, I would recommend you quit porn immediately so that you don’t have to suffer permanent damage to your physical body. It’s just not worth it because you might never be able to enjoy your life again just because of a habit that is easily avoidable.
Even though there are so many benefits, many people still struggle along their journey.
The Simple Solution you need to overcome porn addiction
Rewiring your brain to enjoy other activities like outdoor sports and exercise can permanently allow you to forget about porn. After a short amount of time cultivating new habits, you won’t even think about it or need it anymore. You’ll wonder what drove you to it in the first place, and you’ll never feel like going back.
Further, you may lack the support system to help yourself quit porn. You don’t have to fight this all on your own! In fact, it’s much better to have a friend, family member, partner or even a counselor help you with it.
What you’re facing is not unbeatable and it can definitely be done. Someone to support you through your journey is the most important thing you need.
Acknowledging the potential lack of control over a given situation may be the optimal course of action. It might be appropriate to consider discontinuing our access to such content. Previously, this was an unattainable feat; however, contemporary remedies exist to address these tendencies.
By installing porn-blocking software such as BlockerX, it is possible to effectively prevent access to pornographic material and other related content. This will enable individuals to lead a more fulfilling and contented life, fostering a positive outlook towards the future.
It’s a Marathon, not a Sprint
Remember, it’s not just important to quit porn but it’s even more important to stay quit. While relapses are fairly common, it doesn’t have to be that way. Here’s where apps like BlockerX can help a lot, especially with smartphones which are always in our hands and pockets.
If you’re watching adult content and you want to stop, there are a few things you can do. First, recognize that you’re. If you’re drinking alcohol or smoking cigarettes, you’re not looking at the world through infantile eyes. You know what you see.
If you’re the same age or in the same situation as the people you’re communicating with online, you know what they’re seeing. Second, set healthy boundaries.
If you’re drinking alcohol or smoking cigarettes, you’re not looking at the world through infantile eyes. You know what you see. If you’re the same age or in the same situation as the people you’re communicating with online, you know what they’re seeing.
Getting BlockerX and starting on the program will be one of the best steps you can take. And don’t forget to cancel porn subscriptions if any. You’ll never need to go back to watching adult content on the internet again! Maintaining relationships with people in the real world makes it less likely that you’ll relapse into addiction.
Remain open and transparent about how you feel and what’s troubling you. You might be surprised at how positively your friends, family or your partner can respond. They will know just how willing you are to change and become a better person.
Oftentimes people are extremely supportive and willing to help out if you just open up and let them. Staying accountable will not only help you never relapse.
It will open you up to entirely new experiences that you never thought possible before. In many ways, quitting porn is the beginning of a new life. Its one that is much happier and more fulfilling than before.
Once you do quit, there’s no looking back!
Conclusion
Ultimately, the cessation of pornography consumption can present a formidable obstacle, which is unsurprising given the high prevalence of individuals who encounter difficulties in this endeavour.
The prevalence of pornography in contemporary culture has increased significantly, with unprecedented levels of accessibility that pose challenges for individuals seeking to resist its allure. In addition, the physiological and psychological ramifications of pornography consumption can elicit potent urges that prove challenging to surmount.
Notwithstanding these obstacles, it is feasible to discontinue the consumption of pornography. Through the utilisation of professional assistance, the establishment of a reliable support network, and the cultivation of effective coping strategies, individuals can surmount their addiction and attain a state of enhanced well-being and contentment.
One can overcome their addiction to pornography with perseverance and dedication, and it is never too late to make a change.
