Sex Addiction Therapy

Have Your Personal Life And Relationships Been Adversely Impacted By Sex And Porn Addiction?

Is your relationship hanging by a thread as a result of a string of betrayals and extramarital behaviors?

Do you feel a compulsive need to have sex or watch porn, despite it putting a strain on your marriage or partnership?

Are you struggling with fear, shame, and denial as you battle sex and/or porn addiction?

If you consistently act on your sexual compulsions—whether that’s through cheating on your partner or regularly watching porn—your relationship is probably in crisis. You may feel a need to keep things hidden from your partner, perpetuating a cycle of shame and secrecy. And though you understand that your partner finds these behaviors unacceptable, you can’t help but act on your urges. 

Your Romantic Life Is Not The Only Thing Impacted By Your Addiction

While such issues of infidelity can certainly take a toll on your partner if you’re in a relationship, you’re probably also struggling on a personal level as you grapple with a great deal of shame, secrecy, and emotional distress. Not to mention, your addiction may be the very thing keeping you from maintaining a healthy relationship if you’re single. 

This shame may have become so intense that you now grapple with daily symptoms of depression, including despair and a sense of hopelessness that you’ll ever be able to control your urges. 

Constantly worried about being “found out,” you may experience overwhelming fear that your family, image, and reputation are at stake if the truth about your addiction comes to light. As a result, you may have withdrawn from others, isolating yourself because you can’t deal with the embarrassment or guilt. 

Perhaps your behaviors have certain physical ramifications. If you’ve stepped outside your marriage and engaged in casual, unprotected sex, you’re more at risk for STDs. And there is research to support that using porn in excess can lead to erectile dysfunction in men. 

When living with a sex and/or porn addiction, you’re trapped in a web of shame and secrecy. You’re probably concerned that your relationships would be jeopardized if the truth came out. Ironically, however, it’s this fear that keeps you stuck inside the same harmful cycle of extramarital behaviors. 

But a trained clinician can help. With sex and porn addiction therapy at Insights Counseling Center, you can understand the source of your urges and regain a sense of control. 

Reach Out For Recovery!

Sex And Porn Addictions Are Very Common Conditions

Though sex and porn addiction can create intense feelings of shame and isolation, the truth is that these are widespread issues in our society. 

Research conducted by the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy suggests that at least three to five percent of the population struggles with sex or porn addiction—but these numbers are somewhat dated, due to lack of research, and they only reflect those who seek treatment. We can only assume that these numbers have dramatically increased in recent years, evidenced by the fact that our practice receives calls about this issue on a daily basis. 

In addition, it’s worth noting that sex and porn addictions are not just men’s issues, despite misconceptions. Again, little research has been done on these addictions in women, but we know from internet usage data that around half of all women watch pornography, while 17 percent struggle with addiction.

Technology Has Significantly Impacted Our Sense Of Intimacy

Given the drastic transition from the analog to the digital in the new millennium, technology has been a substantial contributing factor to the increase in both sex and porn addiction. Websites and apps make sex ever available, creating a space where infidelity can take place instantaneously. 

Even with all of the possibilities the internet has afforded us, we’re becoming increasingly lonely and dependent on technology to foster a sense of connection. Not to mention, as our culture becomes more and more unforgiving and perfectionistic, there is a need to medicate and escape the pressure—for some, this might be substance use, and for others, it’s sex. 

The stigma of sex and porn addiction causes many individuals to avoid seeking treatment. Instead, many often have to “get caught” or cause damage in their relationship before they accept that outside help is necessary. 

At Insights Counseling Center, we know that shame heals in community—not in isolation. Sex and porn addiction therapy can help you become aware of the factors driving your impulses so that you can heal the distorted sense of intimacy that has impacted you and your relationship. 

Therapy Allows You To Get To The Root Of Your Sex And Porn Addiction So You Can Create New Patterns And Possibilities 

Trying to correct an addictive behavior by yourself is not unlike sawing the branches off of a tree when, in reality, the problem lies within the roots. Working with a counselor, you can begin to dig the soil of shame away to get to the buried trauma at the core of your sex and porn addiction.

Our approach uses cutting-edge trauma-informed technologies alongside Dr. Pat Carnes’ 30-Task Model, engineered specifically for sex and porn addiction treatment. Following this model, the first part of therapy will be spent de-shaming the condition as we work toward healing trauma and rebuilding your relationships. Learning more about your arousal template, relapse cycles, and how to identify triggers will equip you with the skills to manage your symptoms and urges. 

The Insights Counseling clinicians are Certified Sex Addiction Therapists, or CSATs, who work together in teams to provide extensive treatment. Whether you’re in individual sessions, group, or co-therapy with your partner, you will work with someone who is committed to healing the entire system—family history, relationship patterns, and interpersonal dynamics included—that perpetuate your addictive tendencies. 

In addition, we use trauma-informed techniques such as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Brainspotting, and neurofeedback to gently target trauma. And because healing happens in community, group is an essential part of treatment that allows you to grow together with others who can share their insights and experiences. 

We have helped many individuals and couples navigate sex and porn addiction issues in therapy, and we know from personal experience that treatment works. Even though it feels like you’re stuck inside this cycle of shame and relationship stress, therapy offers avenues for a new understanding of intimacy.

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