Sex Addiction

Sexual addiction is a complex condition that can have a devastating impact on a person's life and those around them. It can lead to problems in relationships, work, and overall mental and physical health.

However, there is hope for recovery.

Sex addiction can have devastating effects on individuals, their partners, and families alike. Seeking help is crucial on the journey to recovery, and our dedicated team provides a range of services including counseling, coaching, and supportive group sessions to aid in this process.

What is Sex Addiction?

Sex addiction is defined as a lack of control over sexual thoughts, urges, and impulses. While sexual impulses are natural, sex addiction only refers to behaviors that are done in excess and significantly impact one’s life in a negative way. 

Signs of Sex Addiction Include:

  • Obsessive thoughts around sex and masturbation

  • Spending a lot of time planning when and where you’ll get your next sexual high

  • Engaging in risky or dangerous sexual behavior or situations

  • Experiencing withdrawal symptoms when not having sex or masturbating

  • Masturbating excessively to the point of injury

  • Continuing to have sex and masturbate despite the negative consequences

  • Feeling shame, anxiety, regret, or depression about your compulsive sexual behaviors

  • Struggling to quit engaging in sexual behavior

  • Having many sexual partners or paying for sexual acts

Sex addiction can present significant challenges that impede individuals from developing meaningful connections with themself and others.

 Negative Effects of Sex Addiction:

  • Emotional withdraw from spouse, children, friends, and family

  • Low self-esteem

  • Loneliness

  • Self-isolation

  • Conflict between ethical values and behavior

  • Anxiety

  • Depression

  • Lack of healthy relationships with partners, friends, and family

  • Trouble concentrating at work

  • Developing a porn addiction

Addiction thrives on secrecy, shame, and isolation, creating a cycle that can be overwhelming to break free from. You've likely attempted to confront your struggles in solitude, only to find yourself feeling disheartened and questioning the possibility of ever being able to change. However, it's essential to recognize that change is indeed possible with the appropriate guidance and support system in place.

Healing from Sex Addiction entails a comprehensive journey that surpasses merely ceasing negative sexual behaviors. It necessitates forging a genuine partnership with the guidance and strategies imparted by your therapist and/or coach to attain lasting sobriety from these detrimental patterns.

Steps to healing from sex addiction:

1.  Honesty and accountability : true change is rooted in being fully honest about your problem, admitting you do have an issue with problematic sexual behaviors.

2. Confrontation of Denial: Change can be difficult, no one wants to admit they have an issue, especially regarding problematic sexual behaviors. But in your healing journey, you must choose to confront the issue not deny or minimize it.

3. Develop Emotional Awareness and Self-Expression: People with problematic sexual behaviors often lack basic emotional language to describe their own pain, and lack healthy coping skills. In recovery, you must learn to become emotionally self-aware and gain the courage to share your emotions while asking for help. As they say, “The antidote to shame is connection.”

4. Allow Empathy and Understanding for Yourself: In your journey you will need to empathize with yourself by understanding self-forgiveness is possible and there is no need to hang your head believing you will never be free from the problem.

5. Change Your Habits & Restructure Your Life: Along your journey of sobriety, you will likely determine changes needed to obtain your sobriety. Willingness to have accountability, willingness to engage in formal therapeutic disclosure, use software to prevent porn use, and set personal boundaries that hold your accountability in place are vital to your recovery.

How Counseling and Coaching Can Help

The initial and crucial step towards recovery is acknowledging the problem and understanding its impact on both your personal relationships and overall well-being. Next, it involves placing trust in your dedicated professional team to guide you through the journey towards a renewed life. At Resilient Mind Counseling and Coaching, PLLC, we provide a range of services including individual counseling, individual coaching, group coaching, and couples support, tailored to address your unique needs and relational dynamics. Our specialists offer proven therapies and coaching specifically designed to combat sex addiction, empowering you to regain control of your life and foster healthier connections.