The Basics of Sex Addiction

Sex as an “addiction”? There is still wide debate within the medical and scientific community whether sex addiction is a “real” addiction with all the characteristics of a drug or gambling addiction. While not all people engaged in high levels of sexual activity may fit into the disease model of addiction, many do, and treating sex as an addiction can be useful for treatment in clinical settings.

How Can Sex Be an Addiction?

Sex can become an addiction when seeking out sex becomes frequent, high-risk, negatively impacts other parts of your life, and is not emotionally fulfilling. In its colloquial usage, an “addiction” is simply any behavior that you know is bad for you, but that you cannot stop doing despite your own efforts. In this sense, sex can certainly become an addiction.

There are certain neurological factors that may also explain sex as an addiction. Sex stimulates reward areas of the brain that release dopamine and other opioid chemicals. This “high” that comes from sex changes your brain chemistry, and in many ways can be thought of as equivalent to getting high off of drugs or other substances. Over time, more and more sexual activity is required to produce the same euphoric feeling, and an addiction can develop.

When is Sex an Addiction?

There aren’t any hard and fast numbers that point to a sexual addiction; different individuals have different libidos, and may naturally find themselves with a higher rate of sex or a higher number of sexual partners. Sex addiction may not involve partners at all—it can also involve addiction to pornography or masturbation.

The real telltale sign of sex addiction is that sexual activity is negatively impacting the life of the addict and the people around them. At times this may be physically high-risk behavior, or it can just be personally or emotionally destructive.

Recovering From a Sex Addiction

Those who are facing sexual addiction may be ashamed of their behavior, and thus, afraid to seek out help. There are effective treatments for sex addiction, however, and sufferers should not feel that they have to fight their addiction alone.

Treatment for sex addiction is often a combination of counseling/talk therapy and medication. In trials, naltroxene, used to help recovering drug addicts, has been shown to be effective in alleviating the urge to seek out sex. Sex addicts can also become involved in self-help groups like Sex Addicts Anonymous, Sexaholics Anonymous, Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous, and Sexual Compulsives Anonymous.

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