Jonathan is a 45-year-old structural engineer. He has been in recovery for both sex addiction and meth/cocaine addiction for just under a year, initially seeking help after his wife learned about his multiple affairs, trips to strip clubs, drug abuse, and sex with prostitutes. Jonathan is serious about his recovery and saving his marriage. Unfortunately, …
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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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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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Do Bears Do Their Business in the Woods? Asking whether teens can become sexually addicted is a bit like asking if they can become alcoholic or drug addicted. Of course they can. In fact, they are every bit as vulnerable as adults to addictions, perhaps more so because their emotional immaturity has prevented them from …
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With cross-addiction, addicts switch from one problematic substance/behavior to another. If they can’t use one substance/activity to escape and dissociate from life, they’ll use another. For instance, Marie is an active alcoholic who occasionally feels bad about her drinking and sobers up. But any time she stops drinking, she binge eats, numbing out with food …
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Addicts of all types have been adversely affected by the tech-connect boom and the endless array of stimulation it provides. As online accessibility, affordability, and anonymity have increased, so too has the number of people falling prey to Internet-related addictive behaviors – compulsive porn abuse, compulsive sexual hookups, compulsive gambling, compulsive shopping, compulsive video gaming, …
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In a previous blog I examined the ways in which sexual sobriety is typically defined, noting that total abstinence, the most common conception of sobriety with alcoholism and drug addiction, does not work for many of the process (behavioral) addictions, including sex addiction and eating disorders. (For instance, if a sex addict is married, his …
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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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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 …
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