This is What Porn Addiction Does to Your Mental Health
Movieguide® Contributor
A Studies/YouGov survey of people aged 18-39 found that 32% of those who watch porn daily feel “‘down, depressed or hopeless’ most or all of the time.”
“Additionally, 36 percent of young adults who are daily porn watchers say they’re lonely most or all of the time, compared to 20 percent who rarely/never view it,” Crosswalk reported Sept. 13. “Roughly one in 10 adults ages 40 and under say they view pornography at least once a day, according to the study. Men are twice as likely as women to watch porn.”
“Considering these findings, addressing the mental health risks associated with frequent pornography use, particularly its link to depression and loneliness, should be a priority for health professionals and American policymakers,” said researchers Wendy Wang and Michael Toscano of the Institute for Family Studies. “Amid America’s ongoing mental health crisis, especially among young adults, it is crucial to understand and mitigate the addictive nature of online pornography. Widespread use of porn has the potential to negatively affect individual well-being as well as social relationships and overall community health.”
The study shows the need for more states to place age verification laws so that minors can’t access pornography. Currently, only 19 states have such laws.
Movieguide® reported last year:
A recent poll from the American Principles Project (APP) found that 83% of American voters would support nationwide legislation requiring age verification on pornography websites…
“It should come as not shock that Americans don’t want their kids watching porn,” APP President Terry Schilling said in response to the poll data. “Beyond being simple common sense, the evidence is overwhelming that early exposure to sexual content can lead to many terrible consequences for a child’s mental and even physical health. Keeping them off porn sites is clearly a no-brainer.”
Addiction Help says that porn addicts experience elevated dopamine levels that they are dependent on to “feel normal.” The organization adds that other mental health conditions are often present with porn addiction.
“Studies indicate that frequent porn use can affect the brain’s reward system, leading to desensitization and an increased need for more extreme content to achieve the same level of stimulation, similar to drug addiction,” Wang and Toscano said. “Moreover, pornography sites use similar techniques as social media platforms, such as infinite scroll, autoplay, and personalized content, to keep users engaged. Like social media companies, rapt attachment is central to the business model of online pornography providers.”
Covenant Eyes highlights the benefits people experience when they give up porn. It can: reduce anxiety and depression, let you focus on goals and “life-giving” passions, improve your brain chemistry and mental clarity, and heal your relationships, especially with a romantic partner.
Crosswalk shared a prayer for anyone who wants to break free from their porn addiction, taken from 5 Powerful Prayers for Deliverance from Addiction by Whitney Hopler:
“My loving God, I’ve been caught in a stressful cycle of desire and shame, but I know you can help me break free of it. I acknowledge that pornography blocks the intimacy that you created sex to nurture through real relationships. Please forgive me for mistreating the people you love through porn, by looking at them as objects to be used rather than as souls to be loved. Please heal my mind from the unhealthy neural pathways that have been wired into my brain from watching porn. Help me identify what triggers my pornography use: stress, frustration, boredom, loneliness, or something else. Empower me to turn to you – the source of all love – rather than to porn when I experience those triggers. Show me what to do when temptation hits, to turn away from porn and toward you. Please repair the sexual brokenness in my life, through counseling on my own or with my spouse, and in any other ways I need healing. Restore a healthy connection with my spouse in our marriage. Let us enjoy and celebrate the sacredness of sex together, the way you intended it to be. Thank you for healing and fulfilling me with real love, so I never need to settle for the cheap substitute of porn again. Amen.”
