The Function of Addiction

Understanding that addiction is more than just a long-standing bad habit is crucial. It serves a psychological purpose. Specifically, sex addiction functions as a coping mechanism for handling life's challenges. Some describe addiction as a behaviour that numbs or self-medicates, providing an escape from the world's pains. Others see it as a quest for perpetual pleasure.

Initially, the object of addiction – be it pornography, cocaine, alcohol, or food – might be sought for pleasure. But over time, these substances or behaviours can become the issues they were meant to avoid, offering diminishing returns on pleasure. What begins as a chase for joy eventually becomes a desperate need to feel "normal."

To some extent, human behaviours are driven by our inherent desire to amplify positive emotions and suppress negative ones. Pursuing pleasure and aversion to pain is hardwired into us, serving as a survival instinct. For example, magazines in doctors' waiting rooms distract us from our worries or ailments. Most of us have various techniques to lift our spirits or relax. Those with addictions are no different. Their primary difference is their over-reliance on their addiction as their main, and often only, coping mechanism. For some engulfed in sex or porn addiction, it's their primary way to regulate emotions, acting as a shield from an increasingly chaotic world.

Groups like Sex Addicts Anonymous use the term "bubble" to describe the experience of being lost in addiction. Inside this "bubble," addicts feel detached, liberated, and insulated from the real world. But this bubble is also a confinement; when it pops, the weight of reality can be crushing.

Sex and porn addiction can be seen as potent mood-altering "drugs." Given the plethora of sexual experiences or porn categories available, users can tap into various emotional states. As drug users might choose between stimulants, depressants, and hallucinogens, those addicted to sex or porn select behaviours to induce specific emotional states. As our understanding of science grows, it's clear that these emotions stem from changes in brain chemistry. Those skilled in using sex or porn to control their emotions can, often unknowingly, generate almost any feeling they desire.

Mark Chamberlin

Counsellor/Mentor