There’s plenty of information about how adult content warps our perceptions of sex and body image, but what would you tell a guy whose consumption makes him unable to enjoy the real deal?
“Hard addict here,” a Reddit user wrote in a recent thread. “How long until my brain resets to enjoy real sex with men? I’ve noticed every time I’m with a guy I can’t [climax] and [am] always thinking of [adult videos] to finish, which is so bad. I wanna get better. Any ideas?”
Related: Antigay lawmaker who wants to cleanse America of all X-rated content won’t share his browser history
One commenter advised the original poster to stop watching the stuff immediately, including explicit images. “It’s a drug like any other,” he claimed.
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He also recommended not masturbating as much. “Desensitization is real,” he wrote. “I was (still kinda am) at a point where I felt nothing from blowjobs, just cuz I’ve jerked or death-gripped too much. Don’t let that be you.”
And during one’s self-love sash? “Practice with lube, condoms, toys, switching hands, new positions,” the commenter added. “Anything to simulate the real thing.”
Another commenter agreed with most of those points, but quibbled with the masturbation moratorium. “Maybe just don’t watch [it] while you do it and focus on the sensual pleasure and real-life sexual experiences you’ve had,” he told the original poster.
And a third commenter recommended the subreddits r/pornfree and r/fightthenewdrug, both of which focus on helping users contending with porn addictions.
Related: Your online adult video viewing habits are destroying the environment
Healthline, meanwhile, asserts that the American Psychiatric Association doesn’t recognize porn addiction as an official diagnosis, but a 2015 review article did conclude that Internet adult content addiction “fits into the addiction framework and shares similar basic mechanisms with substance addiction.” The site also says “addiction may lead to poor relationship quality, lower sexual satisfaction, [and] lower self-esteem” and recommends therapy and support groups for individuals affected.
ThinkPIease
I think the government should limit how much porn we can watch. I have has some addictions to midget porn in the past but I was able to get over it with help of some government programs.
Heywood Jablowme
So now you have sex with real-life midgets?
ThinkPIease
Only when I can afford to pay for sex.
Matthewnow
This article made me touch my naughty parts.
LARRY
wait you have naughty parts? I want naughty parts…
rikard_pearson
give yourself permission to get off how you get off. attend to your partners needs, enjoy all the items on the sexual menu, but if it takes 90 seconds of eyes closed death grip who cares. i have retrained myself and it’s worth the effort, but sometimes you don’t cum and that’s ok.
Mister P
Is there a government program to actually make you think. Please.
Cam
This has been a massive push by the Mormon church. To avoid their members realize that the LDS church isn’t providing after school services to it’s members kids and is instead buying apartment buildings and lining the pockets of it’s leaders, they have been pushing the idea that all of the worlds problems are caused by porn.