Tolerance: Tolerance occurs when the body needs increasingly larger or more potent doses to get the same effect from an addictive substance or a behavior. Escalation: Escalation occurs when a person indulges his or her tolerance to an addictive substance or behavior with larger or more potent doses.
At the age of 19, Devin’s parents, when he was home on summer break from college, learned that he was looking at gay porn on his laptop, and that he had posted his profile on several gay hookup apps. As members of a conservative religion, they sought advice from their pastor, who told them that …
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As mentioned in part one of this blog, sexual addiction can be difficult to identify. Because of its highly secretive nature (the addict’s denial/unwillingness to disclose), even therapists sometimes struggle to uncover and diagnose active sexual addiction. The good news here is that there are some basic tools that can be used to identify (or …
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There are three main criteria for the diagnosis of sexual addiction: Preoccupation to the point of obsession with sexual fantasies and behaviors – online and off, with self and/or others Loss of control over sexual fantasies and behaviors, typically evidenced by multiple failed attempts to either quit or curtail these activities Negative life consequences directly …
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In my previous posting to this site, I wrote about the reasons that women sometimes engage in sexual infidelity, promising that I’d take a look at men in this week’s blog. So, as promised, here is part one of my take on male cheaters…
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 …
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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 …
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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 …
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It seems that lately you can’t turn on a television or pick up a newspaper without encountering some news item on the latest public figure entering treatment for sex addiction. It begs the question – is it really sex addiction, or just one (or several) random indiscretions? The following information is excerpted from an article …
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