When it comes to sex addiction, many misconceptions prevail that make it difficult to understand what the addiction really is. Similar to all types of addictions, sex addiction is due to underlying causes, i.e. anxiety or stress that drives an addict to engage in risky sexual behavior.
Sex addiction is not about sex, contrary to popular belief. It truly is like any disorder or addiction that needs a comprehensive treatment. The following are five facts about sex addiction that you may not know of:
Sex addiction affects females
While a majority of sex addicts tend to be male, females also suffer from sex addiction. In fact, women are likely to be addicted to love, which makes them dependant on their sexual partner. Mostly, people with a dependent personality disorder are addicted to love and sex, and as a result, become totally dependent on their partner. Increasingly adolescent females are engaging in reckless and promiscuous sexual behavior, often times arranged via apps on smart phones. These behaviors are often the result of using the sexual activity to fill a void or emptiness or to escape from emotional issues.
Sex addiction disrupts everyday life
Sex addiction is real. It is a serious issue that disrupts an addict’s everyday routine. Incessant sexual thoughts overcome an addict’s mind and they find it increasingly difficult to stop this obsessive behavior. Since most sexual addicts are not aware of the root cause of their addiction, they act out sexually.
Childhood sexual abuse
It is common for survivors of childhood sexual abuse to repeat the same patterns of abuse to deal with their trauma. Such addicts suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder. Similarly, delayed intellectual development in adolescents can enable them to develop sexual behavior because of their lack of understanding of healthy sexuality.
Substance abusers
Sexual addiction is common among substance abusers. They might develop sexual addiction as an alternative to substance abuse, especially when they quit alcohol or drugs.
Personality disorder
Often, sex addicts have a personality disorder, such as borderline disorder or obsessive-compulsive disorder. These individuals resort to risky sexual activities when the thoughts spiral out of control. In addition, victims of borderline personality disorder could also have compulsive sexual thoughts. Furthermore, those with sexual identity confusion are likely to engage in compulsive sexual activities.
For sex addicts, one of the biggest battles that they have to deal with is the shame that this addiction brings with it. Addicts need to seek an effective therapy to help them establish effective ways to stop unhealthy sexual thoughts and behavior. For this very reason, it is pivotal to get access to a clinically intensive therapeutic experience, such as a wilderness therapy program for treating sexual addictions.
STAR Guides provides a reliable and effective sex addition solution in the shape of its wilderness therapy for adolescents and young adults. Unlike other treatment programs, STAR Guides offers sex addiction counseling to help patients understand the psychology behind their sexual behavior. Click here to learn more.