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Sexual Addiction

Executive summary

Sex addiction, commonly referred to as nymphomania in women or satyriasis in males, is a psychological condition characterized by compulsive sexual thoughts and acts. Its causes include: exposure to phonographic materials at a young age, physical or sexual abuse, drugs such as apomorphine and dopamine replacement therapy, family traits such as alcoholism, compulsive eating and compulsive gambling. Sex addicts present with these symptoms: inability to resist the desire to engage in sexual activities, engagement in sexual behaviors to a larger extend as well as for a longer period of time than one intends, persistent as well as uncontrollable compulsion to engage in sexual activities, spending excessive amount of time in getting sex, being sexual as well as recovering from a sexual act, constant preoccupation with the desire to engage in the act, engaging in the behavior at the expense of other important activities such as academics, job and other social obligations, inability to stop the behavior despite knowledge of the social, psychological, financial, as well physical problems it is causing, limiting ones social, occupational as well as recreational activities because of the behavior, distress, restlessness, and irritability if one is unable to engage in the behavior. Diagnosis involves looking for a maladaptive behavior which causes one to develop distress or impairment. Differential diagnosis on the other hand involves looking for paraphilic as well as hypersexual behaviors that come with sexual addiction. Sex addiction treatment comprises following a 12 step therapy with the help of a therapist very well knowledgeable in the subject. Other treatment methods include Celibacy contract which involves abstinence from any sexual activity with self (masturbation) or others and Sobriety plan/ contract which involves the use of a written down plan. Drugs such as antidepressants also help solve the problem.

Introduction

 Sex addiction is a process addiction characterized by compulsive sexual thoughts and acts. This paper seeks to establish the etiology of the behavior, its symptoms, diagnosis as well as its treatment. Previous researchers have not been able to separate healthy frequent sex from sexual addiction and that’s why this subject is of interest to me.

Research methodology

 To realize the research objectives, both primary and secondary sources of information were made use of. Primary sources of information included interviews conducted on sex therapists very well knowledgeable in the subject. Secondary sources on the other hand comprised of library research targeting books and articles touching on the subject. Websites which discuss the subject also came in handy.

Main body

 Sex addiction is a process addiction characterized by compulsive sexual thoughts and acts . its a psychological condition which makes a person unable to manage his/her sexual behavior. Sexual addiction is commonly referred to as nymphomania in females and satyriasis in males (Coleman, 2003).

 Sexual addiction is attributed to a number of factors. These include: Exposure to phonographic materials at a young age, physical or sexual abuse, drugs such as apomorphine and dopamine replacement therapy (Coleman, 2003. Child abuse leads to childhood trauma. This abuse can either be sexual abuse, physical abuse, or emotional abuse (Coleman, 2003. Child abuse involves: forcing a child to kiss or even hung other people, criticizing the sexual development of a child that comes with adolescence, attacking the thinking process of a child, ridiculing a child, screaming or shouting at a child, inflicting unfair punishments on the child, constantly hitting the child, depriving a child of privacy, insulting a child, forcing a child to keep secrets, forcing a child to be perfect, blaming family problems on a child, depriving a child of supervision, protection and security, and punishing a child for normal sexual curiosity (Carnes e tal, 2002).

 Emotional abuse can either be the use of a child by an adult as a best friend, or emotional incest whereby children are used by their parents to satisfy sexual needs(Carnes e tal, 2002) . Some families are more predisposed to sexual addiction than others. Children who grow up in families which other addictions such as alcoholism, compulsive eating and compulsive gambling flourish are more vulnerable to sexual addiction. Other family characteristics which predispose children to the behavior are: rigid, closed, secretive, detached, chaotic, intrusive, confusing as well as enmeshed families (Carnes e tal, 2002).

 Symptoms of sex addiction include but not limited to: inability to resist the desire to engage in sexual activities, engagement in sexual behaviors to a larger extend as well as for a longer period of time than one intends, persistent as well as uncontrollable compulsion to engage in sexual activities, spending excessive amount of time in getting sex, being sexual as well as recovering from a sexual act, constant preoccupation with the desire to engage in the act, engaging in the behavior at the expense of other important activities such as academics, job and other social obligations, inability to stop the behavior despite knowledge of the social, psychological, financial, as well physical problems it is causing, limiting ones social, occupational as well as recreational activities because of the behavior, and distress, restlessness, irritability if one is unable to engage in the behavior (Francoeur, 1994) .

 Victims of the condition also present these behaviors: a strong feeling of blood repletion as well as size enlarging in the genitals, high sensitivity in the genitals, pain down the stomach while urinating, occasional fever, powerful multiorgasms during sex especially in women, urinary bladder overfill, premature orgasms which occur at the stimulation of the genitals and other erogenous zones, compulsive sex stimulation, multiple affairs, multiple one night stands, persistent and uncontrollable desire to use pornography, unsafe sex practice, cybersex, prostitution, exhibitionism, obsessive dating especially using personal ads, voyeurism ( the habit of watching others in a sexual way), sexual molestation, excessive masturbation, failure to get satisfaction from the act, intrusive sex which involves touching others without their consent, having sex with animals, pedophilia which involves having sex with children, watching child pornography, engaging in sadistic or masochistic sex, and uncontrollable urge to engage in sex when stressed (Francoeur, 1994).

 There are certain core believes or cognitive distortions which are associated with victims of this condition and therefore are symptoms of the disease (Francoeur, 1994). These include: the belief that one is worthless, the belief that one cannot be loved in their condition, the belief that one’s needs cannot be met when one depends on others, and the belief that sex is one’s most important need (Francoeur, 1994).

 A clinically relevant criteria for diagnosing the condition has been developed. This criteria involves looking for a maladaptive behavior which causes one to develop distress or impairment (Kingston, 2008). This maladaptive behavior can be manifested by: intolerance which is characterized by increased level or intensity of the behavior in order to attain the desired effect, diminished effect accompanied by continued engagement in the act at the same level/ degree (Kingston, 2008). Distress is also manifested through psychological withdrawal syndrome as well as psychologically described changes when one withdraws form the behavior, engaging in the behavior again in order to relieve or escape the withdrawal syndrome. Clinical criteria also involves looking at the symptoms of the behavior already discussed (Kingston, 2008).

 Sexual addiction diagnosis can also be differential. Differential diagnosis involves looking for paraphilic as well as hypersexual behaviors that come with sexual addiction (Rowan, 2006). Paraphilic and hyper sexuality are symptoms of a brain lesion which is a side effect of medication or even endocrine abnormality. Differential diagnosis relies on additional symptoms which characterize the causes of the behavior (Rowan, 2006). This diagnosis involves an inspection done to the genitals. This inspection is prompted by regression from a normal sexual behavior, excessive aggression, auras as well as seizure attacks before or during sexual behavior, abnormal body habitus and soft neurological symptoms (Rowan, 2006).

 Sex addiction comes with an heavy price. One is greatly predisposed to sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV/AIDS, gonorrhea, syphilis, hepatitis C, etc (Rowan, 2006). Addiction to sex has seen many people loose their jobs due to the habit of using colleagues as subjects and frequent absenteeism from work (Rowan, 2006). One also suffers financial loses as a result of spending huge amounts of money in hiring prostitutes (Rowan, 2006). An addict will always find himself on the wrong side of the law as a result of engaging in lewd behavior and hiring prostitutes. Addicts also become emotionally depressed and become preoccupied with irrational thoughts such as those of wanting to commit suicide (Rowan, 2006).

 Sex addiction treatment comprises following a 12 step group attendance, individual as well as group therapy with the help of a therapist who is very well versed in the subject of sex addiction treatment (Brown, 2002). Sexaholics anonymous is an example of a group therapy for addressing sex addiction. It comprises of a fellowship of men and women who come together to share their experiences (Brown, 2002). This gives them the strength and hope necessary to defeat the addiction. The only qualification one should have to join the group is simply a desire to stop lusting and become sexually sober. Other groups which use the twelve step therapy are sex addicts anonymous, sexual compulses anonymous, and sex and love addicts anonymous. The treatment program also carries out sex addiction education(Brown, 2002). There are several books by famous authors such as Dr. Patrick Carnes which provide such education. Websites addressing the issue are also available. Such websites pair sex education with others such as alcohol addiction education, and education for the addiction of many other drugs (Brown, 2002). Sex therapy as a treatment method is based on the belief that emotional and physical intimacies are desirable goals. Individuals in the therapy program discuss sexual as well as relationship issues with the assistance of a specialist who is very well knowledgeable in this area (Brown, 2002).

 Celibacy contract as a treatment method involves abstinence from any sexual activity with self (masturbation) or others, any pornography, as well as cybersex . This abstinence allows the fear, anxiety, pain and shame that one was trying to escape to surface. The addict through this abstinence gets to know his/her ability to survive without sex. This abstinence period is normally between 30-90 days (Shelley, 1991).

 Sobriety plan/ contract is a treatment method that involves the use of a written down plan. This plan is written down by the addict in collaboration with a therapist as well as a sponsor. The plan contains the behaviors which the addict seeks to quit as this helps to define sobriety (Shelley, 1991). This plan requires the addict to do the following: pray daily, destroy all forms of porn, install a filter in the computer which would block porn material, read recovery books, work the twelve steps, work with a therapist on daily basis, and keep a record of progress in a journal daily (Shelley, 1991).

Conclusion

 This paper has discussed the causes of sexual addiction which have included : exposure to phonographic materials at a young age, physical or sexual abuse, drugs such as apomorphine and dopamine replacement therapy, family traits such as alcoholism, compulsive eating and compulsive gambling. Symptoms of the behavior have also been discussed. These have included: inability to resist the desire to engage in sexual activities, engagement in sexual behaviors to a larger extend as well as for a longer period of time than one intends, persistent as well as uncontrollable compulsion to engage in sexual activities, spending excessive amount of time in getting sex, being sexual as well as recovering from a sexual act, constant preoccupation with the desire to engage in the act, engaging in the behavior at the expense of other important activities such as academics, job and other social obligations, inability to stop the behavior despite knowledge of the social, psychological, financial, as well physical problems it is causing, limiting ones social, occupational as well as recreational activities because of the behavior, distress, restlessness, and irritability if one is unable to engage in the behavior. Diagnosis involves looking for a maladaptive behavior which causes one to develop distress or impairment. Differential diagnosis on the other hand involves looking for paraphilic as well as hypersexual behaviors that come with sexual addiction. Treatment has involved the use of a 12 step therapy process, celibacy contract, sobriety contract and antidepressants.

References

Brown, S (2002). The Handbook of Addiction Treatment for Women. London: Jossey-Bass

Carnes, P., & Adams, K. M. (2002). Clinical management of sex addiction. London: Psychology Press.

Coleman, E. (2003). "Compulsive sexual behavior: What to call it, how to treat it?". SIECUS Report. London: Oxford University Press.

Francoeur, R. (1994). Taking sides: Clashing views on controversial issues in human sexuality. London: Pushkin Pub. Group.

Kingston, D. (2008). "Problematic hyper sexuality: A review of conceptualization and diagnosis". Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity. New York: Routledge

Rowan, E. (2006). Understanding Child Sexual Abuse. Mississippi: University Press of Mississippi

Shelley, E. (1991). Sex and Love: Addiction, Treatment and Recovery. London: Praeger

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