Who Is a Sexual Addict?
More and more adults men and women including teens are seeking clinical treatment for sexual addiction. The contribution to the increased number of sexual addicts is partly the result of the increasingly infinite variety of Internet-based sexual content (cyber-sex), and partly the result of easy accessibility of anonymous sexual partnering via mobile phone and social media. Sexual addiction is a condition that involves the sufferer becoming excessively preoccupied with thoughts or behaviors that give a desired sexual effect. No one factor is thought to cause sexual addiction, but there are thought to be biological, psychological, and social factors that contribute to the development of these disorders. Sex addicts have been described as suffering from a negative pattern of sexual behavior that leads to significant problems or distress. Frequently, a crisis convinces sexual addicts to seek treatment. They’re caught in the act by a spouse, fired from their job, or arrested for soliciting sex from prostitutes. For some people, the crisis brings relief from distress caused by their behavior and constant fear of being discovered. While there is no formal diagnosis for sex addiction, mental health professionals and researchers have attempted to define the disorder. The criteria for sexual addiction may include:
- Constant failure to resist impulses to engage in specific sexual behavior.
- Being preoccupied with or persistently craving sex; wanting to cut down and unsuccessfully attempting to limit sexual activity.
- Thinking of sex to the detriment of other activities or continually engaging in excessive sexual practices despite a desire to stop.
- Spending considerable time in activities related to sex, such as cruising for partners or spending hours online visiting pornographic Web sites.
- Neglecting obligations such as work, school or family, friends in pursuit of sex.
- Continually engaging in the sexual behavior despite negative consequences, such as broken relationships or potential health risks.
- Escalating scope or frequency and intensity of sexual activity to achieve the desired effect, such as more frequent visits to prostitutes or more sex partners.
- Feeling distress, anxiety irritability when unable to engage in the desired behavior.
You may have a sex addiction problem if you identify with three or more of the above criteria. In general, sex addicts likely to arrange their life around sex in the same way that cocaine addicts organize theirs around cocaine. Please visit author, Moshe Ratson at his Google+ Profile: +Moshe Ratson
