A behavioral addiction is quite nuanced and there are many factors to consider when recovering from one, especially a sexual addiction like porn. The negative feelings of pornography can be quite intense and can cause emotional barriers. Emotional barriers can be a blockage for many. Emotional barriers are those things that might keep you from achieving a full recovery.

It’s important for you to identify what emotional barriers you have so that you can achieve a full recovery from porn. Porn and sex addiction are very common so if you’re feeling alone, please know you don’t have to do this on your own. Porn addiction or compulsive pornography is an addictive disorder that ruins lives and if you’re feeling you’re down in the dumps, it’s important to do the work to help yourself overcome this. 

Where were you before?

If you struggle with a behavioral addiction from porn, sex or masturbation it can be helpful to write down any sort of emotional struggles you were having BEFORE you started to engage in porn or sex. This is the primary method for self discovery.

For example, maybe you struggled with lack of confidence, poor self-esteem, levels of depression or anxiety. Then write down any emotional barriers you struggle with NOW. For example, it may be poor self-esteem, anxiety and shame which may have been an impact of pornography. You will notice an overlap. In my example the overlap is poor self-esteem and anxiety. The new emotional barrier is shame. Shame is a very common emotional barrier for those who struggle with addictive pornography. When considering all the factors it’s important to dig deeper into your own thought processes. 

30 Days

We can assume that once you get control of your behavioral addiction, such as sex, excessive porn or masturbation,  over the course of 30 days, while you work through an addiction program such as CSPMA, the shame  will start to dissolve. It won’t happen overnight but it should get better as you stop engaging in the sexual behaviors like sex or viewing pornographic material. The impacts of pornography will decrease but you need to be patient. Not engaging won’t be easy but it does get easier with time and you will need help.

Abstaining from anything that has caused an addictive disorder is difficult but it’s especially difficult with excessive pornography as it’s free and easy to consume. At CSPMA, we can help you learn the skills you need to overcome triggers to watching porn. 

Overcoming Emotional Barriers

Take the two emotional barriers that overlap which in this example is poor self-esteem and anxiety. A person who is struggling with a compulsive pornography or sex addiction will need to figure out how you will overcome those emotional barriers so they can achieve a full recovery. What are things to do to overcome poor self-esteem and anxiety?

For example, it may be focusing on positive self-talk for poor self-esteem, reading self-help books about how to increase your confidence, and so on. For anxiety it may be something like incorporating yoga or meditation into your life or even talking to a doctor if necessary. These emotional barriers can also cause different levels of depression, sexual dysfunction, a decline in daily functioning, or impact a person’s sex life. Sexual dysfunction is one of the main impact of pornography use that causes people who struggle with porn addiction seek help. 

Journal 

And last, it’s important to document these findings. Most people use a journal of some sort. When struggling with a sexual addiction, like sex or porn, emotional barriers affect one’s overall quality of life, their health, their brain activity,  their relationships and harmful effects can be quite traumatic with an overall feeling of depression, anxiety, or loss of control. Addiction is a brain disease and addicts need to learn how to overcome these addictive behaviors such as compulsive pornography and this is just one exercise that can be helpful in doing so. Porn addicts or compulsive porn users often struggle to break through emotional barriers due to shame and stigma. 

Addictive pornography addiction can be similar to an illicit substance addiction or substance use disorder as the negative consequences eventually arise. Compulsive porn users have a hard time quitting pornographic material which can sometimes cause repetitive behaviors, mental disorders, distress or poor sexual behavior.  Similarly drug and alcohol users experience the same sort of struggle. Pornographic content is like alcohol to someone who has an alcohol addiction or drugs to someone who has an addictive substance use disorder. When an addict is consuming something, it tends to get darker and darker whether that’s harder alcohol, drugs, risky sex, or problematic pornography. 

Addictive pornography can also cause impaired control. Considering all factors, when real life becomes a struggle that’s usually a sign that help is needed. For example, if someone is experiencing loss of control on a regular basis, they should seek treatment by a medical professional or find a program that caters to their needs. 

Health

Sex or addiction to pornography can cause numerous mental health issues or mental health consequences which make it difficult to overcome emotional barriers. The impact of pornography greatly increased over the years. However, those who struggle with a sexual behavior disorder or impulse control disorder that involves sex or porn, should know that it is possible to get back to baseline.

Signs of porn addiction include compulsive behaviors, negative feelings, psychological distress, an increase in negative consequences, risky behaviors and excessive porn viewing. The unhealthy behaviors can start to affect personal relationships or cause levels of depression.  While there are a lot of factors to consider,  part of recovery from a porn or sex addiction is being able to overcome certain emotional barriers. By overcoming emotional barriers lots of things will start to gradually improve such as intimate relationships, sexual relationships, daily life, mental health issues, mental health consequences, and less erectile dysfunction, etc.

Getting Help

Getting the right help by talking to a healthcare professional, mental health professional or going to therapy is a primary method to overcome sex and porn addiction and reduce the negative impacts of pornography or negative feelings that addiction to pornography and sex have on your life.

Therapy can be useful for an addiction to porn but also other factors include mental disorders such as a mood disorder, high anxiety levels, levels of depression, hypersexual disorders, sexual satisfaction,  and even erectile dysfunction, etc. and can also help a person to overcome their emotional barriers while working on an effective treatment option for other mental health disorders or mental health consequences at the same time. Having a porn addiction isn’t easy but the fact that you are here, reading this blog, shows you are wanting to make a change soon. 

CSPMA

If you are struggling with an internet pornography addiction or any sort of sexual addiction check out CSPMA for a recovery plan that is specific to sex, porn and masturbation addiction. Our primary method is to help people improve their lives by looking a the whole mind and body experience. While there are many factors to consider, depression, high anxiety levels and other mental health conditions or mental health consequences can only get better if you focus on your physical health and social circumstances as well.

By decreasing risky behaviors and access to erotic material you can start to learn how to manage pornography addiction. Porn addiction is very real. Getting started means making sacrifices such as eliminating erotic material or porn sites from your phone or blocking ways to viewing pornography. The impact of pornography is often negative feelings but with dedication and focus you can get through this. If you struggle with a sex addiction, then eliminating sexual activity for a period of time is also going to be essential. 

Get Started Today

At CSPMA you can get the help you need. Our platform works because of the ease of access and the fact that you are not wasting excessive time on things that don’t apply to you. For example, you don’t need to know about heroin addiction when your primary addiction is porn. We also provide additional resources along the way. These resources will help you kick your sex or addictive pornography for good. Your daily functioning will start to improve within days.