Sex Addiction: What Really Causes It?

Sex Addiction: What Really Causes It?

by Suzanne Kellner-Zinck

Sex addiction and compulsion is an ever larger problem these days with the use of the computer for work and many of the activities we used to do with other technologies like television and reading books and magazines.

Sex addiction statistics show that 25 million Americans visit cyber-sex sites between 1-10 hours per week. Another 4.7 million over 11 hours per week. (MSNBC/Stanford/Duquesne Study, Washington Times, 1/26/2000)

According to Datamonitor, in 2003, over half of all spending on the Internet is related to sexual activity, with 30 million people logging on at pornographic Web sites daily. The expectation is that this figure will fall due to the rise of other forms of Internet commerce.

So what is an addiction: Basically an addiction is created any time an individual has a compulsive thought that leads to an obsessive behavior. With the behavior the neuro-transmitter dopamine is released into the brain bringing on the anticipation of the feeling of pleasure.

The person will continue the damaging behavior regardless of any negative impact on his life, with the main thought being how to get his sexual release.

The problem for most addicts is that they can burn out their dopamine response never able to bring about that original “high” experienced, leaving them to their addiction to just feel “normal” meaning the shutting out of any negative thoughts that are making the addict feel bad about himself.
Sex addiction is a bit different than other addictions by the creation of an attachment disorder.

Normal development of the right orbital frontal cortex is needed for a person to self-regulate, This includes starting tasks, decision making, monitoring normal activity and sexuality.

Infants are held by primary care-giver, usually the mother, whose right eye connects up with the infant’s right eye. This forms the emotional area of the amygdala to form normally which then impacts the emotional center of the brain, the hippocampus, allowing for the normal emotional development..
With sex addicts, the right eye of the primary care giver isn’t looking into the right eye of the infant maybe because she is depressed, or somehow neglectful of the needs of her infant. This is produces thin axons going into the amygdala the brain where self- regulation occurs creating the problem of mal-perfomance of the amygdala and hippocampus (the seat of emotions). This results in the sex addict never being able to attach normally in any primary relationship.

So there is a physiological reason why the emotional issue occurs.

Sex addicts need to learn how to have correct boundaries with others as well as learning how to let go of their addiction. This can be done fairly quickly in the world of hypnosis especially since the sex addict is in a hypnotic trance state as he looks at the porn sites or goes for joy rides looking for a woman out there in the world with which to get his release. So, why not use the hypnotic state to help the addict to overcome his addiction?

If you would like more information on this important subject, you can purchase the book Do I Have A Sex Addiction? Now What? On my website or at amazon.com in the kindle section for a minimal investment. There is much information packed into a rather small package.