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How will you know if you are addicted to PMO?
What is this PMO addiction about? What are the signs that indicate PMO addiction. Read more to know.
Porn, Masturbation, & Orgasm is what PMO stands for. A person is noted at being indulged in PMO when they are watching porn, masturbating excessively, and ultimately reach their orgasm phase in a single session.
An individual can also get into one of the three activities without getting involved in the other two. Still, an excessive amount of porn, generally followed by masturbation and reaching the phase of orgasm, will head us to the day’s topic.
How would I know whether I am addicted to PMO or not?
Today, the number of individuals involved in PMO is rising, mainly among young men, primarily due to the high-speed internet and the porn being readily available.
In our post today, we are exclusively going to speak about identifying the symptoms of excessive PMO based on our research and combining people’s experiences from all around the globe. These are the notable effects that have been scientifically researched and proven!
What are the signs of PMO addiction?
No single answer matches this query; however, it varies from person to person. So, what is excessive for one person might not be extreme for the other.
A person can start undergoing similar effects after getting into PMO and repeating it twice weekly. A few others may experience similar side effects after indulging in this activity about 3 to 4 times each week.
The following are a few symptoms from among the sea of others. Identifying when you are practicing it excessively, turning it into addiction, and when it is time to reboot yourself
1. Social anxiety
It has been reported that people engaging in excessive PMO suffer from social anxieties. They never feel like socializing or going out and look forward to keeping themselves isolated.
They think of being in awkward conditions during social gatherings and try their best to avoid every possible human contact.
They would opt to spend time with themselves in their room instead of going out with friends, as they are always looking for excuses for not going out and avoiding social gatherings.
They feel their heart pacing up and keep thinking about ways to go home sooner whenever they are in public.
Excessive PMO is not the sole reason for social anxiety but is one of the rest for sure.
You may suddenly start feeling awkward in social gatherings or begin to feel different symptoms of social anxiety if you were once not a socially awkward person, as PMO can be the reason here.
Try to refrain from PMO for about a month, and you will start noticing the difference. It consists of a month period where people quit PMO and begin seeing a decrease in the symptoms of social anxiety.
Consider consulting with a mental health counselor. Even after refraining from PMO for a month, you do not notice any difference.
2. Depression
Individuals indulging in excessive PMO also have been noted to undergo symptoms of depression.
As you watch porn and jerk off, your brain thinks that you just had sexual intimacy with your partner and have passed on your genes there. It releases dopamine, a “feel good” hormone, to the reward center of your brain that fails to distinguish between having real sex with a sexual partner and watching porn.
Your dopamine receptors start to get desensitized and will not receive a relatively more significant amount of dopamine that offers you the same level of pleasure as an outcome of the massive rush of dopamine.
The activities that do not provide you with that dopamine rush fail to excite you, and your brain does not feel like doing them again.
Our daily routine and activities cannot offer you a similar kind of dopamine to what porn can give.
You do not feel like doing it and keep returning to watching porn and satisfying your more significant need for a high level of dopamine. Consequently, you start to lose interest in your normal daily activities and start feeling depressed and unmotivated at almost all times which is a common symptom of depression.
Lower levels of dopamine have been connected to depression and several other symptoms of depression.
PMO might cause sadness or some of the symptoms of depression. PMO wasn’t the only cause of depression, but it is undoubtedly one of them.
If you avoid PMO for at least a month, you should see a gradual improvement in your depressive symptoms. After a month, see a psychotherapist for assistance if you don’t feel any better.
3. Low Self Esteem
Individuals who indulge in excessive PMO are noted to have low self-esteem. They do not take themselves as high enough leading to the feeling of being worthless and considering themselves not good for society.
They now miss out on several more opportunities in life as a consequence. They feel as if they are not worthy of anything good in their lives.
They live with an inferiority complex and consider people to be superior to them. Therefore, it results in them not understanding their power and wasting it entirely.
If you indulge in PMO and suffer from low self-esteem, then it is time you consider quitting PMO, and surely you will start noticing the difference. Numerous individuals have noted their high self-esteem with increased self-worth after quitting PMO.
4. Lack Of Motivation
When you are getting into PMO, your brain is noted to be releasing some massive amount of dopamine that offers you a lot of pleasure and quiets the dopamine receptors.
Some activities cannot provide that major rush of dopamine that fails to excite you any longer, and you refrain from doing it.
Because the dopamine receptors have gotten desensitized to the dopamine generated by those activities after obtaining a large quantity of dopamine from indulging in PMO, you lack the drive to accomplish the essential things.
Individuals have claimed a lack of enthusiasm to undertake simple everyday tasks such as showering, cleaning their teeth, grooming their hair, and extreme situations.
These are depression symptoms, and if you’re experiencing them, you ought to speak to your family and see a psychiatrist right away.
Individuals also expressed a lack of desire to engage in previously valued pastimes. Try to give up PMO and check out the results if you have been feeling that lack of motivation to perform those requisite things or the things you once loved doing.
People have indeed reported increased motivation after abstaining from PMO for about a month.
5. Erectile Dysfunction
It is noted that allowing yourself to get into excessive PMO would lead to erectile dysfunction.
Erectile Dysfunction induced by porn is quite a sensible thing, and numerous people are suffering from it has been on the rise specifically for the ease of availability and the unlimited access to porn videos that are available along with the high-speed internet.
ED or erectile dysfunction was mainly found in older men. Still, now even people in their early 20s, along with many teenagers, find themselves suffering due to it before high-speed internet porn.
Some younger men have reported facing hardships in getting an erection or retaining an erection during sex with their partner.
A few men, mainly the young ones who get into this addiction, have no interest in having sex with their partner in real life as they find porn more enticing and pleasurable.
You need not worry if you have been suffering from PIED. People have reported that their erectile dysfunction has enhanced after refraining from PMO. Quitting this addiction is reversed in PIED; however, it takes time.
6. Changed Outlook towards Women
Men, especially the younger ones, have been noted to have an addiction to excessive PMO with a changed outlook toward women even during their worst cases.
They started to notice women as mere sexual objects, and they could not form a genuine link with women as they felt that they required women only for sex and no other things.
They even feel like the women are undeserving and unworthy but place women on a pedestal screwing over their dating life.
Whenever they witnessed an attractive woman, all they could do only to have thoughts of having sex with that girl. They even had the awkward feeling and a sense of low confidence while speaking to a woman.
They even refrained from establishing eye contact and therefore are connected to having low self-esteem whenever they communicate with women.
You should consider quitting whenever you are experiencing these symptoms. Men also have reported forming a genuine connection with women and portraying a woman as a human being instead of a sex object after refraining from it.
7. Brain Fog & Concentration Problems
The inability to recall information quickly or maintain a sharp concentration is known as brain fog. You don’t feel like yourself and are unable to think coherently.
Excessive PMO users have complained of brain fog, difficulty concentrating, and becoming caught in irrelevant ideas while doing activities.
Consider stopping PMO if you’re experiencing brain fog, memory loss, or difficulty concentrating on a task. People have mentioned that after stopping PMO, their brain fog disappeared, and they could focus considerably better.
8. Insomnia
People with excessive PMO have reported facing issues with sleep, and they tend to get less quality sleep and screw up their sleeping patterns.
PMO disturbs your sleep duration, your sleep quality, and your sleeping pattern or schedule.
Furthermore, PMO is not the only reason behind insomnia or a negative sleep pattern, as it is one of the reasons.
Consider quitting PMO for at least a month to check out the difference if you are undergoing any sleep issues. If the problem persists even after quitting PMO, and you find no difference, then it is recommended to get help from a professional.
9. Hair Loss & Hair Thinning
Hair loss and thinning have been documented in men who engage in excessive PMO. Your body transforms testosterone into DHT (Dihydrotestosterone) when you ejaculate, which induces hair loss and thinning.
DHT forces hair cells to shrink, interrupting the hair growth cycle. Miniaturization is the term for this technique.
PMO is not the sole cause of hair loss; there are several others, but PMO is just one of them.
After discontinuing PMO, men have reported less hair loss and fuller hair and beard. If you use PMO and are experiencing hair loss, try stopping for a month and see what happens. You should also boost your protein intake, drink plenty of water, and massage your body.
10. Chronic Muscle or Joint Pain
People who have indulged themselves in excessive PMO have been noted to face low back pain, muscle pain, and knee pain.
Your sperm is mainly composed of several things, and semen is one. It is made within your bone marrow, the material inside your bones since your bones are not completely solid.
Therefore, generally, two things happen while you are masturbating.
You will suffer from extensive back and joint issues since you will waste all of your semen if your bones are weak or you suffer from obesity, and it will consume yet another day or two from replenishing itself at 33.
You will end up facing osteoarthritis, which, when left untreated, will lead to degeneration of your bone. It is a disease in which the bones become weak or hollow and degenerate.
If you are into excessive PMO and face joint and muscle pain, stop from PMO, and you will start noticing the differences. Along with refraining from PMO, you should also consult a doctor and search for the right kind of professional help.
11. Morning Hardness
It is the most positive sign you may have come across, as it will indicate that you are not dealing with the hazardous effects of PMO. When your penis is erect after you wake up indicates healthy blood as well as nerve supply to your penis.
When you are into the No PMO lifestyle, there is a significant shift in the testosterone level commonly, which could be the reason for nocturnal penile tumescence.
Additionally, your testosterone level is at its highest peak in the morning after you have woken up. The rise in this hormonal level alone is enough to lead to an erection even without any physical excitement.
12. Porn Related thoughts
It is pretty tough to erase memories you have created while watching porn, as it will add in a few flashes for a couple of weeks before being vanishes off completely.
It can lead to trouble for you since these thoughts can lead to relapses, but you can overcome these situations and thoughts easily by instantly shifting your brain.
It sounds pretty straightforward; however, it is challenging. You can quickly try out meditating to control these thoughts related to porn, and it will work.
13. Boredom
When you are watching porn and masturbating to it, you are pretty happy, but after you discontinue doing it, you experience the opposite effects for a few days.
You will have a lot of spare time, but you will become bored if you do not put it to good use.
You’ll be wondering to learn that almost all people relapse or interrupt their No PMO streak simply because they are bored. As a result, it’s critical to choose a job that’s just as exciting as porn.
For example, I spend my leisure time writing pieces like this because I enjoy them, and it keeps me from being bored and helps me avoid PMO.
14. Higher sexual Cravings
You will experience overwhelming desires for a few days, but this will only last a few days. Don’t give up!
Our bodies tend to repeat things that we completed the day before. In contrast, if you got up at 8 a.m. yesterday, there’s a good chance you’ll wake up around 8 a.m. the next day. That has been one of the reasons because while people stop using porn and masturbation, they have strong desires.
You’ve conditioned your brain in PMO, and you’re pretty good at it since you’ve been doing it for years, so stopping it for good is so tough.
It consists of an insane level of self-control for mastering the art on your own.
You may have to keep in mind that failure is all a part of the journey if you consider that a single failure can stop you as you think you are wrong. All you need is to get up and never allow stupid emotions to control you.
15. Loss of Appetite
I had in mind that I was the only one who had felt the loss of hunger, but when I checked, a guy informed me that he was also in No PMO mode and was eating less but felt a good amount of energy build up.
Another person informed me that his digestive system improved when he refrained from PMO. Earlier excessive PMO led to digestive issues, and now it is gone. Therefore stopping from PMO can indeed lead to a good and healthy life.
Final thoughts
PMO addiction will destroy confidence, boost depression, and keep you aloof from reality. It is not easy to stop this addiction, but it is easier to overcome it as you only need to keep trying.
If you are undergoing these warning signs and symptoms indicating that you are becoming a PMO addict, all you need is to quit PMO.
You can easily get help from several no PMO forums online where people share their addiction and no PMO experiences. It will boost your morale and also help in overcoming this dreadful addiction.
