Is Sex Addiction A Mental Illness?

when sex becomes addiction, it effects a person’s mental health mentally, physically, socially and emotionally. Our expert explains that there are many mental states, due to which this type of addiction can arise.

Sexual relationships between two people helps in expressing and strengthening their emotional bond. But when sex becomes an addiction, it can affect a person’s mental health in a negative manner. Any kind of addiction is usually bad for a person and therefore, sex addiction too can adversely affect a person mentally, physically, socially and emotionally. To understand the topic of sex addiction in detail, the ETV Bharat Sukhibhava team spoke to Dr. Veena Krishnan, our expert and senior psychiatrist and here is what she explains.

What Is Sex Addiction?

Dr. Krishnan explains that sex addiction is a mental illness, where a person has no control over his/her sexual behaviour. Along with a desire to have repeated sexual activities, their minds are full of erotic thoughts. This addiction also makes a person addicted to pornography and masturbation. Apart from this, in many cases, a person starts making relations with more than one person and also sometimes also with women involved in prostitution, in order to calm down their lust. All this directly affects a person’s personal life, relationships and health. If proper treatment is not provided to the person at the right time, chances are that they may not be able to stop themselves from getting involved in sexual malpractices, subjected to their addiction. As a result of obsessive addiction, a person loses control over himself and may suffer from many mental and physical diseases.

Reasons For Sex Addiction

There can be many physical, psychological and social reasons behind a person reaching this stage. Dr. Krishnan explains that many times this addiction occurs in people due to mental illnesses, unhealthy hormones, constant imagination of scenarios such a pornography, as a result of an accident or any other diseases.

Depression, anxiety, learning disabilities and obsessive compulsive disorders can also cause a person to develop this addiction. Nowadays, there are many porn-like movies and web series available and broadcasted on the OTT platforms, which attract and excite the person, due to which their mind is overwhelmingly filled with sexual thoughts. If a person is surrounded by such thoughts for a long time, it can result in addiction.

Apart from this, people who have a history of such addiction in a family member may also have the possibility of being a sex addict. People with such an addiction usually face emotional instability, frustration or disappointment and inability to control their desires and thoughts.

Our expert also explains that there are many mental states, due to which this type of addiction can arise in a person:

• Alcohol or drug addiction
  Many times a person loses control of himself due to alcohol, drugs or intoxication and unintentionally becomes a victim of this sexual disorder.
• Victims of sexual assault

A person who has been a victim of sexual exploitation and has not been able to mentally recover from the fear or impact of that assault may also develop such a tendency.

• People suffering from bipolar disorder
  Bipolar disorder is a complex mental illness. In which the person is surrounded by the same kind of emotion for a long time. Therefore, there is a risk of sex addiction even in such patients.

• Asperger's syndrome
  People with Asperger syndrome also have a higher risk of addiction. People suffering with this condition are usually unable to adjust as per the social norms. They also have trouble expressing themselves. In order to get rid of this feeling of inferiority, they become victims of sex addiction.

Sex Addiction can also be a consequence of Paraphilic and Pedophilia disorders in a person.

Symptoms Of Sex Addiction

• Constantly thinking about sex
• When a person forms sexual relationships with more than one partner
• Spending a lot of time watching pornography
• Go to prostitutes for sexual intercourse
• Inability to have self control
• Becoming addicted to masturbation

Treatment Of Sex Addiction

As soon as a person comes to know about this condition, a psychiatrist should be consulted immediately. Dr. Krishnan explains that with the help of various therapies and medicines, this addiction can be controlled. All this will help the victim strengthen his/her mental power to and have a control over themselves to overcome this addiction.

In this, with the help of cognitive behavior therapy, therapeutic methods and medicines, efforts are made to divert the victim’s thoughts and behaviour in a different direction. Apart from this, with the help of medicines, an attempt is made to reduce the sex impulse in the person and keep their mind calm.