The effect of pornography use on relationships, individual wellbeing and society is quite a current topic.
The effect of pornography use on relationships, individual wellbeing and society is quite a current topic.
Accessing pornography websites is now easier than ever. Pornography use is common and wide spread and can prove to be quite problematic in nature.
In relationships it can lead to both men and women devaluing each other.
Pornography use can often be sniggered at however it can become a behaviour that damages relationships and takes precedence over more important aspects and responsibilities in your daily life.
How do we identify if someone is ‘addicted’ to porn in comparison to someone who has an interest in porn?
Symptoms of porn addiction:
If you look at porn during work or social situations
If you try to quit viewing porn but fail to do so
Hiding the fact that you watch porn from your partner
Watching porn causes you shame or guilt
Feeling irritable if you can’t watch porn
Feeling that you can’t enjoy sex without porn
You need to watch more intense porn to get the same thrill out of it
Often people’s expectations of what sexual encounters should be like stem from exaggerated portrayals in pornography.
It is important to educate yourself on healthy sexual practises and above all ensure both you and your partner are comfortable and give consent to any and all situations.
If the thought of giving up pornography completely is too daunting, take a gradual approach.
Here some ways to help you:
Admit that you have a problem –If viewing porn is becoming more compulsive or interfering with your own mental health and self-esteem, you must admit that you have a problem. The first and most important step in helping you overcome porn addiction is to admit that you have a problem.
Install a porn blocker – Installing a porn blocker on your browser means that when you try to access a pornography site, it will be automatically blocked. If you feel you may be tempted to remove the blocker, get someone you trust to put in a password for you or click on a password generator.
Remove yourself from accounts – If you have accounts on pornography websites, log in and delete them. This will make it more difficult for you to access the sites.
Find other things to do – If you had spent a long time watching porn you will now have lots of free time. It is important to keep busy. You may like to read books, take up exercise or meet up with friends.
It is important that you treat porn addiction as a true addiction. Dismissing it as ‘not as serious’ as other addictions will only mean you will treat it less seriously.
There is support available to help. Trained psychologists will carry out the most effective treatments methods to suit you, such as CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) which will teach you practical relapse prevention skills.