Is Pornography Addiction/Porn Addiction a Real Thing?

Despite been around for centuries and having a widely accepted entertainment industry, the status of pornography is highly controversial. Some people call it a source of entertainment but others get offended by it. Likewise, some people watch it occasionally but others watch it regularly.

A time comes when it is hard for them not to watch porn and this condition is characterized as porn addiction.

The important thing to know here is that porn addiction is not recognized as a medical condition by the American Psychiatric Association (APA).

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This addiction is the same as that of other addictions but since it is not recognized, many people including some mental health professionals don’t treat it like a disease. Also, there are no standard guidelines or treatment protocols available for porn addicts, which is why it is hard to help such people.

Pornography habits are not something that people like to talk or discuss. In fact, many of them hesitate to talk about watching porn.

A survey conducted by Kinsey Institute reveals that nearly 9% of people who watch porn have tried to control their urge of watching it at some point in their life. But now, watching porn has become so much easy as it is available online even without paying any charges.

This easy accessibility has persuaded more people to watch it and without realizing they get addicted to porn. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), which is published by the American Psychiatric Association, is mostly used by mental health experts to help addicts.

But there is no mention of porn addiction in this DSM neither it explains how to treat such patients.

The research reveals that all behavioral addictions are a lot more serious than they look. One research from 2015   revealed that porn addiction and substance addiction has so much in common. But other studies believe it is more than a compulsive behavior and less of an addiction.

But there is a fine line between these two conditions and it is extremely hard to distinguish between them.

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Compulsion means behavior where a person feels a deep urge to do something without having a real logic or motivation. Most of the time it is to reduce the stress.

On the other side, addiction is an inability of leaving something even knowing the dangerous outcomes. The only thing which is common between these two is a feeling of helplessness and no control over behavior.

But whatever the reason is, watching too much porn is a problem whether or not a person knows the consequences. For everyone, watching porn starts like an interest in it. watching it, again and again, develops an urge to watch it on regular basis, and at this point, it becomes a problem.

When a person is caught in porn addiction, he feels that he has no control over his urge to watch it. It could be similar to internet addiction, shopping addiction, and other similar behaviors.