What Happens When You Watch Too Much Porn
Unbeknownst to most people, you truly can watch too much porn. According to the Addiction Center, pornography addiction is a behavioral addiction where one feels a compulsion to watch porn without being able to stop. In 2019, a study found that 11% of men and 3% of women reported they were addicted to pornography. However, because it is a behavioral addiction as opposed to a substance addiction, it can go undiagnosed and most of the data is self-reported. Many people do not see the problem with porn overconsumption or possible porn addictions because they do not understand how it can negatively impact them. Here’s how…
Effects of Porn Overconsumption on Relationships
First and foremost, porn overconsumption and porn addiction can have a variety of negative impacts on your relationship. It can lead to sexual dissatisfaction with your partner, due to the unrealistic beliefs about sex. Constant and perpetual consumption of pornography often leads to the comparison between real-life partners and those viewed in porn. Therefore, it can create dissatisfaction when your partner cannot meet the impossible and unrealistic expectations set for them by depictions of sex in porn. However, these unrealistic expectations of sex can also lead to an inability to form intimate relationships and a lack of emotional closeness because the person becomes so focused on the addiction that there is no room to focus on building the emotional intimacy and connection with another person.
Effects of Porn Overconsumption on Mental Health
Alongside impacting your relationship, porn overconsumption and addiction can have incredibly negative effects on one’s mental health. Porn addiction can lead to isolation due to the constant time and energy suck watching porn has become. Therefore, the individual has little time for socializing or building relationships. Similarly, porn addiction and overconsumption can often lead to feelings of shame or guilt, which can create avoidant or withdrawn tendencies in individuals, ultimately leading to isolation. Not only can it cause isolation, overconsumption and addiction to porn can lead to a loss of confidence or loss of self-worth due to the constant comparison between the individual and performers in porn.
Effects of Porn Overconsumption on Physical Health and Brain Chemistry
Finally, porn overconsumption and addiction can have a multitude of impacts on your physical health and brain chemistry. Porn addiction and overconsumption can have long-term effects on your libido due to the desensitization of your brain’s reward system. Therefore, it can make it harder to experience pleasure in real-life sex. This can ultimately result in decreased libido, erectile dysfunction, and potential difficulty reaching an orgasm. Similarly, it can impact your ability to become aroused, aka Porn-Induced Erectile Dysfunction (PIED). Due to the same cause as the decreased libido, the desensitization to the stimuli or porn can result in a decrease in dopamine receptors in your brain, creating an inability to become aroused without porn. Alongside decreased libido and arousal, the desensitization to the brain’s reward system can lead to the desire or need for more extreme forms of pornography to achieve the same level of arousal and can make people more prone to violent or aggressive behavior due to the distorted views on sex and relationships.
Ultimately, if you are worried that you are watching too much porn, might be addicted to porn, or are suffering from any of these effects, it is important to reach out to a therapist or professional who can help you work through the addiction and get your life back on track.
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