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If you’ve spent hours or minutes checking out porn recently you might be wondering if it is affecting you.

Here are some ways that it could be changing your life.

Porn can be addictive

A clear negative consequence of pornography use is that it may escalate to the level of addiction and surprisingly it can be just as addictive as drugs. Neurologically, at the moment of ejaculation, scans of the brain can look almost identical to the euphoric states seen in heroin and cocaine users. In fact in some cases, the more someone watches porn, the more that the rewarding neurotransmitter dopamine is released inside their brain. This can cause them to want more and to make the decision to pursue it further, which can become an endless cycle.1 It’s no wonder some people feel like they’re getting hooked!

“Porn viewers develop new maps in their brains, based on the photos and videos they see. Because it is a use-it-or-lose-it brain, when we develop a map area, we long to keep it activated.”2

Porn can make you lonely

Commonly for most men, porn is viewed while they are by themselves. Sometimes in secret, late at night while their partner is asleep or maybe a sneaky peak on their phone while alone. Before long, they can find their porn habit is making them retreat further and further from family, friends and work. Their secret life can become more and more real than their actual real life.3 Real intimacy involves us interacting with other people and building relationship with them. Porn bypasses all of that. All it needs is a screen and most likely an internet connection. No other humans required.

Porn can destroy your relationships

Over time, some men find that heavy porn use can stop them becoming aroused by their sexual partners. Even worse than that, exposure to numerous sexy images can cause them to devalue their real-life partner.4 Sometimes the more they use pornography the more they’ll be less satisfied with their partner’s looks, sexual appetite and performance in the bedroom. Over time they can find that they’re putting more value on porn than actual real sex with real emotional involvement.5

Porn can change your brain

The compulsive use of pornography can cause measurable physical, anatomic changes in mens brain, the hallmark of brain addiction.6 Pornography, delivered by high-speed internet connections, satisfies every one of the prerequisites for neuroplastic change.7 Excessive viewing of pornography can actually reduce the grey matter in the reward sections of the brain. This creates less nerve connections, which means men have to view more novel images and constantly seek out new porn, or types of porn, to get the reward circuitry of their brain firing.8

Porn can be unrealistic

Often porn shapes cultural expectations about female sexual behavior.9  Generally in real life, women aren’t available sexually whenever their partners want, they aren’t always horny and they might not want to be part of the latest kinky sex move. Plus, often what is seen in porn might not be really what’s happening. Porn actors might be trafficked or abused on the porn set. They might vomit after their scene is finished or be subjected to violence when the camera isn’t rolling.10 Sometimes porn videos could’ve been stolen or uploaded online as an act of revenge after a relationship breakup.11

Porn can make you feel empty

Porn can leave men feeling like they are a bad and unworthy people. It can make them feel like their desires are not being met and that sex is their most important need.12 Some research has shown that prolonged porn use can cause significant changes in mental health including depression, hostility and anxiety.13 So it’s no wonder men can feel empty and alone after viewing. Regaining control of their life begins when they decide to start a journey of recovery and reduce their porn viewing significantly (often to zero).

So what next?

If any of this rings true for you, we’d love to help you change your porn viewing habits so you can experience positive change in your life

GET HELP NOW

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1 Struthers, W. (2009). Your brain on porn. In Wired for intimacy: How pornography hijacks the male brain. Downers Grove, Ill., Illinois: InterVarsity Press.
2 Doidge, N. (2010). Acquiring Tastes and Loves. In The brain that changes itself: Stories of personal triumph from the frontiers of brain science. Carlton Nth, Victoria: Scribe Publishing Pty.
3 Patrick J. Carnes PhD. (2001) Out of the Shadows: Understanding Sexual Addiction. (Third Addition) Center City Minnesota: Hazelden Publishing
4 Wilson, G. (2010, December 4). Why Is Romeo Ignoring Juliet? Retrieved November 14, 2015, from http://www.yourbrainonporn.com/why-is-romeo-ignoring-juliet
5 Zillmann, D. and Bryant, J. (1988), Pornography’s Impact on Sexual Satisfaction. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 18: 438–453. doi: 10.1111/j.1559-1816.1988.tb00027.x
6 Hilton, D., & Watts, C. (2011, February 21). Pornography addiction: A neuroscience perspective. Retrieved November 13, 2015, from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3050060
7 Doidge, N. (2010). Acquiring Tastes and Loves. In The brain that changes itself: Stories of personal triumph from the frontiers of brain science. Carlton Nth, Victoria: Scribe Publishing Pty.
8 Kühn S, Gallinat J. Brain Structure and Functional Connectivity Associated With Pornography Consumption: The Brain on Porn. JAMA Psychiatry. 2014;71(7):827-834. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2014.93.
9 Eberstadt, M., & Layden, M. (2010). Finding Three. In The social costs of pornography: A statement of findings and recommendations. Princeton, NJ: Witherspoon Institute ;.
10 Dines, G. (2010). Pornland: How porn has hijacked our sexuality. North Melbourne, Vic.: Spinifex Press.
11 Simpson, J. (2014, July 4). Revenge porn: What is it and how widespread is the problem? Retrieved November 14, 2015, from http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/what-is-revenge-porn-9580251.html
12 Patrick J. Carnes PhD. (2001) Out of the Shadows: Understanding Sexual Addiction. (Third Addition) Center City Minnesota: Hazelden Publishing
13 Wilson, G. (2014). Isolating cause and effect. In Your Brain on Porn. Commonwealth Publishing.