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Sexual addiction
Sex addiction research paper
Sex addiction research paper
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No matter the severity of the addiction, an addiction is still an addiction; discovering this is not that hard. People do not associate something like a sex addiction to be as severe as a cocaine or meth addiction or an addiction at all. No matter how an individual looks at it, if someone has withdrawal symptoms and cannot stay away from it, then it is classified as an addiction. Individual’s like to say sex cannot be as bad of an addiction as cocaine or meth, but in all reality, it can be. The hormones and stimulations triggered in sex, sends messages to the brain that makes it happy, which means the brain continues to “need” it. What people do not understand is, an addiction is an addiction no matter the activity that is happening. When it comes to sex, people fail to realize the “symptoms” of addiction. What is the first thing someone addicted to sex thinks about anytime they see the gender(s) they are attracted to? Sex. Once a person becomes addicted to a substance or action, they become fully dependent on it. Once they become fully addicted to sex, they cannot function a day or two without it and will not stop …show more content…
When it comes to an ongoing addiction, the symptoms are more severe. If an individual is addicted to something along the lines of meth or cocaine for a very long period of time, then they begin to freak out. At that point, the person addicted will attempt to do anything for that high. They will get extreme headaches, could potentially develop depression, and even worse. An addiction is a very fast process that does not leave as fast as it came upon a person. It develops in the brain and stays there. The very first time someone begins a substance that can lead to addiction, automatically begins the addiction process. When this substance is taken away, the brain freaks out and goes into withdrawal mode. To overcome withdrawal symptoms is sometimes impossible, even though the user is completely aware of the
There are many different definitions in which people provide regarding addiction. May (1988) describes that addiction “is a state of compulsion, obsession, or preoccupation that enslaves a person’s will and desire” (p. 14). Individuals who suffer from addiction provide their time and energy toward other things that are not healthy and safe. The book
Addiction /ə-ˈdik-shən, a-/ noun 1. A strong and harmful need to regularly have something (such as a drug) or do something (such as gamble), 2. An unusually great interest in something or a need to do or have something (Addiction). Addiction can cause a person to sabotage their lives in order to get their next fix, whether that be scoring another gram of coke or a double with cheese, a large fry, and a large soda. Addicts are stuck in a constant cycle of getting cravings, going through with their ritual, using, experiencing guilt, and being emotionally triggered, thus bringing them back to the beginning. Now, most people when they hear the word “addiction”, the first thing that comes to their mind is drugs. However, if a vast majority of individuals
Some researchers believe sex addiction is not a disorder, but something that is excessively used. The internet has made everything so easy to access. Sex addiction is not even included in the category DSM-5. Based on the DSM-5 list of various disorders, the clinicians then decide whether an individual shows the characteristics of someone who has a psychological disorder. Maybe in the future, sexual addiction would have a chance to make it into a sub category of the DSM-5 instead of labeled in a single category alone. Sex addiction seems to become a problem when it is harming the family unit or the image of someone famous when it becomes headline news. We really do not know how many people suffer from this disorder. There has not been sufficient research about this, a situation which makes this topic very delicate. To some, the word addiction alone is without meaning. Most individuals that do suffer from this disorder do suffer from a chemical imbalance as well. A twelve-step program, self-help support groups, and individual counseling can be recommended for treatment. In recovery they will have to learn how to come to terms with their addiction and how to think differently if placed in certain scenarios. For example, they must live a life that does not put them in situations that may cause one to relapse. It is important to surround themselves around individuals that have
While alleged sex addictions have existed for many years, they have only recently been accepted as valid excuses for sexual deviancy. Attitudes toward sex addiction in the past offer a stark contrast to how it is viewed today, as the constantly medicalizing society insists on putting everything under the technical microscope. Sex addiction is commonly associated with a person’s inability to control his sexual behavior, implying an abnormally high sex drive and obsession with sex which have negative effects on his personal life (MedicineNet 2007, 1). Rather than breaking down the science behind the disorder, a customary practice in today’s medicalized society, older attitudes towards sex addiction placed it under the same light as alcoholism, where a lack of control and unwillin...
Addiction is the result of a gradual accretion of neurological tendencies based upon the ingestion of a particular substance or the taking of a particular action. It is cumulative, building over time, and varies in strength from individual to individual based on their own abilities to exercise willpower over themselves and their actions. Some people become addicted more easily than others. In the end, addiction is the result of a series of choices made by the individual. These choices usually have a massive impact upon the life of the person, modifying their friendships, family life, professional life and psychological/spiritual well being. The cumulative aspect of addiction is built up by an individual willfully choosing to either not see the direction they are heading in or to not take action even though they sense themselves following the path of an addict. Some kind of deterioration in their life is bound to take place, and willful ignorance is all that could keep one from noticing that. Likewise, addiction can he helped and cured by an individual choosing to do something different, to adjust their habitual reliance on a specific substance or action for pleasure or escape or whatever quality they are searching for. Only the individual can make that choice, but once they have made that choice other people and institutions can help them.
Before the addiction is in full swing, there are various stages the user will experience. There are many stages that the user will go through. The first stage would be experimentation. At this point, the person is not considered a user, yet. They are curious about the substance, the effects and the attraction that others also have in the substance. They may have friends or family members that talk about it. It may have been a case of peer pressure the first time the person uses the substance, or the person may try it as a coping mechanism to deal with stressful situations, such as the loss of a loved one, or a job. For some individuals it goes no further than the experimentation stage, for others it begins the “recreati...
Klein, Marty. "You're addicted to what? Challenging the myth of sex addiction." The Humanist July-Aug. 2012: 31+. Gale Power Search. Web. 8 Apr. 2014
The word Addiction was started out just being used for a person who could not stop either doing drugs or drinking alcohol. Even though those are the most common things addicts are addicted to there are other things people can be addicted to. Now the term addiction is used for a person who can not stop doing anything such as gambling, having sex, tanning and the list goes on. The person who is using this substance or is doing this behavior have consequences, rather its effecting there body or them personally and their family. Despite the consequences, the person that has the addiction still does it. Before what the person is doing becomes an addiction, it is something that is done because they enjoy doing it. It becomes an addiction when ...
When a person first uses drugs, it is voluntary. After repeated use the user has becomes conditioned to keep using. The reason this happens is because drugs effect the brain’s reward center by filling it with dopamine. This makes the user feel pleasure by using which then makes the user want to keep using. When comparing this to classical conditioning the Neutral stimuli would be the environmental stimuli associated with drug administration, the unconditioned stimulus would be drugs effect on the brain, and the unconditioned response would be the reward received by doing drugs. After repeated use the conditioned response is now the environmental stimuli associated with drug use and the conditioned response is the reward received by doing drugs. Like with Pavlov’s dogs’ triggers response to the lab assistant and bell, Addicts can have triggers as well. Certain smalls, locations and situations can trigger and addict to use. For example, every day from work an addict sits down on their back porch and smoke a marijuana cigarette. The back porch would then become a trigger. So, every time the addict sits on their porch they then crave the marijuana cigarette. When someone is clean or sober, these triggers can lead to
Main Point: What defines an addiction? According to Psychology Today, “Addiction is a condition that results when a person ingests a substance…. or engages in an activity….that can be pleasurable but the continued use/act of which becomes compulsive and interferes with ordinary life responsibilities, such as work, relationships, or health.” This can range anywhere from drug use to eating disorders, to gambling, to even texting in today’s generation. Shocking to say the least, especially when most people do not even know they are addicted or are an addict until they realize this definition.
Addiction is a very strong word that brings along many negative connotations. When we think of an addiction we imagine someone who depends on a certain substance, most likely alcohol to have their needs met. Addiction is defined by the Webster dictionary as, "a compulsive need for and use of a habit-forming substance (as heroin, nicotine, or alcohol) characterized by tolerance and by well-defined physiological symptoms upon withdrawal." Even though our society sees addiction and only applies the word to drug addicts and alcoholics, there is a much wider range of subjects that fall under the umbrella of what an addiction truly is. An addiction is a dependency on any kind of materialistic object that you use on a day to day basis that brings
Patrick Carnes, Ph.D., the first person to identify and treat this affliction, hypothesized sex addiction results from a person needing certain neuro-chemical changes (4). Everybody experiences certain neuro-chemical changes that make the physical act of sex feel pleasurable. A normal person produces this stimulus, attains the natural high, and is satisfied. An addict, however, uses this chemical to escape pain or seek relief from stress (4). This theory supports a nature argument because there is nothing a person can do about it. Their body creates an altered response to a completely normal act and fosters an uncontrollable need to experience sex. It is comparable to an alcoholic's reaction to alcohol (4). The sex addict needs this chemical to be released in order to desensitize themselves from their problems. This is not healthy, but i...
Sexual addictions of any kind can continue to progress in stages that may include child pornography, violence and pain, prostitution, rape and even serial killing. The overexposure of sexual imagery is creating a tolerance not only to the images presented but also to the crimes that go along the continuous craving for more and more extreme pornographic material to satisfy a sexual need. The key here is that people are after more and more sex, not a sexual relationship. The relationship part is gone and sadly, people just want to live the moment, satisfy a sexual need and walk away without any regard to the damage they might cause.
The ranges of sexually addictive behaviors are various. Sexual addictive behaviors include, but are not limited to compulsive masturbation, multiple affairs, unsafe sex, sexual anorexia, multiple or anonymous partners, pornography viewing, phone or cybersex, voyeurism, and exhibitionism (National, Sex). Despite the differences in the acting out behaviors, sexual addictions all have the same common denominator in their origins and aspects in relation to their developments. Thus, the underlying causes are the same.
The addict becomes dependent on the drug. The addict uses it, despite having full knowledge of its harmful effects on health. It is considered a brain disease because it changes the structure and functioning of the brain.There is an uncontrollable desire or craving to consume the drug. Addicted people often engage in compulsive behavior to obtain the drugs. The addicts find if impossible to control the drug intake. In case of drug abuse, people start taking drugs in larger doses than the recommended doses. The addict is not able to discharge his/her day-to-day responsibilities in an efficient manner. It effects both the physical and mental health of the addict. Very often, addicts witness extreme changes in body weight. Very often, the addict stops socializing.Sometimes, drug addiction is also referred to as drug dependency since the addict develops dependency or addiction for a particular