When working with alcoholics and drug addicts the concept of sobriety is easy to define. Essentially, for substance abusers sobriety entails total abstinence, meaning no use of mood altering substances (outside of medical emergencies and carefully prescribed, medically necessary usage). This standard of complete abstinence is also used with certain process/behavioral addictions, such as gambling. …
Read more
For the most part, effective sexual addiction treatment strategies mirror the techniques that have also proven useful with substance abuse treatment. In short, sex addiction treatment specialists rely on a combination of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), group therapy, trauma-informed assessment and awareness, and 12-step recovery work. One major treatment difference when dealing with sex addiction …
Read more
Sexually addicted men and women enter treatment because their addiction is destroying their lives, but once they’re in therapy they often fail to mention their out-of-control sexual activity (most often due to shame). Instead, they ask for help with their addiction’s related symptoms – depression, severe anxiety, relationship problems, co-occurring substance abuse issues, and the …
Read more
In today’s world the Internet is pretty much ubiquitous. Nearly everyone owns a computer, laptop, pad, smartphone, or whatever – all of which provide a level of interconnectivity and access that was almost unthinkable as little as ten years ago. Because of this, we now have endless opportunities for social interaction and almost limitless access …
Read more
Lord knows we hear plenty about sexual addiction in the news – most often stories about politicians, actors, athletes, and just plain folks who are systematically ruining their lives with ongoing patterns of problematic sexual activity. Of course, for every scandal that makes the papers, tens of thousands of similar tales go unreported, known only …
Read more
Addiction is characterized by an easily recognizable cycle. Essentially, the cycle is: being triggered (feeling emotional or physical discomfort); thinking about using as a way to ease the discomfort; preparing to use; actually using; pretending that using was OK (engaging in denial); and then feeling bad about using. The last stage, feeling bad, is the …
Read more
Previous blogs have addressed the universal signs and symptoms of sexual addiction, as well as the female gender-specific signs of sexual addiction. As a brief reminder, the universal signs and symptoms of sexual addiction in both males and females are: Preoccupation: obsessing about sex, making the fantasy and pursuit of it the number one priority …
Read more
I wrote in a previous blog about the universal signs and symptoms of sexual addiction, noting that all sex addicts display, in some form or fashion, the following: Preoccupation: obsessing about sex/romance, making the fantasy and pursuit of it the number one priority in life, etc. Loss of Control: inability to limit or curtail sexual/romantic …
Read more
For many under-informed folks, a kneejerk reaction to the phrase “sex addiction” is for them to say something along the lines of, “Now that’s an addiction I’d like to have. Where do I sign up?” In reality, however, sexual addiction is not nearly as much fun as it sounds. Try thinking of it this way: …
Read more
