Porn Addiction Sucks!

Writen by Tess Marshall

How do you know if you’re addicted to porn? Answer the question, “Can you take it or leave it?” If the answer is no, if porn has become a regular part of your life and if you plan your life around it you have a problem!

Pornography effects every area of an addicts life but the most devastation happens in a porn addicts relationships.

Relationships suffer because a porn addict spends more time online than time interacting with his family and friends. A porn addict experiences “being in a trance” where several hours spent online seems like several minutes. Meanwhile family members and friends feel ignored, angry, unimportant and neglected.

Pornography impairs the ability to build deep intimate relationships. Pornography isn’t about real human relationships and sexuality. Porn is about sex that is dehumanizing and toxic. Most men who view pornography use it for sexual release (masturbation) or self-gratification.

There is no love, honor, dignity, intimacy or commitment involved in online porn and cybersex. Porn addicts set themselves up for unrealistic expectations leading to unhappy and unhealthy relationships.

Pornography destroys finances and leads to fighting and bickering about money. In the beginning online porn is free, but once hooked a porn addict continuously pays for more lewd, graphic and sensual material. This leaves the porn industry rich and a addict and his family poor.

A porn addict isn’t a bad person but a person in pain. Often the addict has been sexually abused or suffers from other unhealed childhood wounds. Porn is used as an escape from stress, fear, loneliness, emptiness and rejection.

The shame, guilt and deceit that stem from porn addiction is often paralyzing.The results of this behavior leave an addict with feelings of regret, self-pity and humiliation. A porn addict often is depressed and loses his enthusiasm and passion for life.

Some researchers have proven that pornography can have the same effect on the brain as cocaine. Epinephrine, a chemical in the brain permanently burns pornographic images into the memory. These burned in images are what makes porn addiction so difficult to overcome. The images are stored at cellular level and become intrusive in daily life for years to come.

Pornography is fantasy, an escape from reality. The reality is life and relationships are hard work. It takes continuous effort to be in an intimate and nurturing relationship with a partner and children. When a porn addict commits to change and becomes 100% responsible for his life he learns to build relationships on commitment, caring and mutual trust. Unlike sex in porn, the sex in healthy relationships is about love.

Tess Marshall has a master’s degree in counseling psychology and a specialty in addictions. She has over 15 years of study, research and experience in empowering people to grow personally, build authentic relationships, and find freedom from addiction. For more information go to http://www.KickPorn.com or http://www.KickPornblog.com.

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Treating Gambling Addictions - An Introduction

Writen by Ryan Bombard

Gambling is a form of entertainment for many people, but in some cases gambling can become an addiction leading to financial problems, relationship stress, and even attempted suicide. It is estimated that 6 percent of north america’s population will have a gambling problem sometime in there life. Gambling addiction is a serious problem. Pathological addictions to gambling are more common in men than women or specific ethnic groups. Gambling can create a rush when you lose and win, and sometimes the user is unable to control their impulses to gamble. This is when it becomes a problem. There are different degrees of gambling addiction. All of which are treated differently, depending on the specific needs of the addict.

Signs of gambling addictions include, but are not limited to: Constantly thinking/talking about and, or, preparing for gambling sessions, gambling during work or when you are expected at home, getting into debt from gambling and lying to borrow money. Using illegal means to finance gambling and neglecting family or other personal responsibilities. Feeling a need to gamble to relieve stress and or ‘escape reality’. Of course, there are also many more signs that could point towards a problem gamble, though gambling addiction is usually blatently obvious.

Treatment programs can range, and are specifically designed according to the addicts needs. Usually the most sucessful therapies combine both professional counselling and user support groups. Medication can be used to combat mood swings, depression and anxiety that addict’ may experience during withdrawl. Pyscho and cognitive behaviour therapy is also used, to replace the negative effects of gambling with positive ones, in turn promoting a healthy and positive attitude towards gambling. Group therapy is also good place for user support and feed back.

Ryan S. Bombard is the owner and operator of Addiction-Spot which features addiction rehabilitation resources and articles.

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Prescription Drug Abuse and Pill Withdrawal

Writen by Peter Nisbet

Prescription Drug Abuse, or pill addiction as it is commonly called, and, ultimately, ‘pill withdrawal’ have been with us since doctors began prescribing drugs, but has become more widespread since the advent of the ‘repeat prescription’ or ‘refill’, whereby patients can have a prescription renewed without having to visit their doctor. This can be as simple for many people as visiting a pharmacy and filling out a form giving their name, address and the drug they want. This is then returned to the surgery for the doctor to countersign. The problem is that these can often be signed as routine, rather than consideration being given to the need, and so facilitating prescription drug abuse.

If a certain patient begins to request repeats more often, would this be noticed? Theoretically it should, but in practice it is frequently not. Not, that is, until the next review. Frequently, twelve repeats are allowed before the patient must again speak to the doctor personally to review the treatment. Prescription drug abuse, and resultant pill withdrawal symptoms, are generally overlooked by the medical profession.

The type of prescription drugs which lead to pill addiction are wide and varied, and not just tranquilisers such as diazepam (Vallium) and nitrazepam (Mogadon). Common ones are codeine and codeine-containing painkillers such as cocodamol, and even over-the-counter codeine based painkillers such as Solpadeine which has its own addiction support group. Most prescription drug abuse is of one or other of these two types of drug: tranquilizers or painkillers. Tranquilizer pill withdrawal is very common in developed countries.

People involved in prescription drug abuse show any of a number of symptoms which are common to all patients suffering from pill withdrawal.

The main symptom of pill addiction is an increased tolerance to the drug, so that the user needs an increased amount to get the same effects they were used to. More and more of the drug is required, and four times is not uncommon. This leads to many problems, not the least of which is that it becomes difficult to control the symptom for which the drug was being taken in the first place. For example, it becomes increasingly difficult to control pain.

Those who suffer from pill addiction have not done so deliberately. Unlike other drug addicts, they have not taken increasing doses simply to get a ‘buzz’. It happens to them gradually, over an extended period of time taking the same drugs to treat their condition. Cocodamol is commonly used in the treatment of arthritis, for example, and prescription drug abuse in such cases is hardly abuse in the real meaning of the word.

The pain-killing effect reduces as the body becomes more and more used to the drug, so the patient must take more or suffer increasing pain, resulting in pill addiction. It is not deliberate, but once it starts the patient can often do little about it due to the pill withdrawal symptoms compelling them to keep taking more and more. They know it is wrong but can do little about it, and try to hide how many they are taking from their family. They reach a stage where they are frightened to admit it, and are terrified to ask their doctor for help in case the drugs are stopped altogether.

Prescription drug abuse leads to physical dependence, and the person cannot function normally without a supply of the drug. The body adapts to the presence of the drug and can function while it is being supplied, but once the course of treatment is over, the patient suffers from pill withdrawal symptoms. These can be severe, including physical illness, mood swings and aggression, and depression. Ultimately pill addiction can lead to death through overdose. Paracetamol based painkillers containing codeine, for example, can be dangerous. The patient overdoses for the codeine content, but the paracetamol is insidious and can cause severe liver damage over a period of time.

The most obvious sign of prescription drug abuse is that the persons affected cannot stop taking them. They will increase the frequency of presentation of repeat prescriptions on a pretext such as needing extra since they are shortly going on holiday, or will resort to doctor hopping. The internet has also made it easy to purchase prescription drugs online, without a prescription from the patients own doctor being required. As has been previously explained, this type of pill addiction is not their fault and more could be done to control the circumstances which cause it.

Doctors, and in some cases the pharmacists, should be aware of the potential problems of long term use of such drugs, and give advice and help once the time has come to stop them. The dose should be reduced gradually rather than suddenly stopping the supply. Prescription drug abuse and pill withdrawal are becoming a serious problem in otherwise innocent law-abiding people. It should be possible to find a means of regularly changing the chemical nature of the drugs an individual has been prescribed with in order to reduce the possibility of this type of pill addiction.

Once dependence has been confirmed, or better still, admitted by a patient, steps can be taken to treat the addiction. Kicking prescription pill addiction is not easy, but better than a lifetime habit, and the doctor can help make it easier to achieve by using gradual withdrawal techniques.

Copyright 2006 Peter Nisbet

Peter is a research chemist with a consuming interest in a wide variety of health issues. If you need help or advice on addictions, or just on health topics in general, his website http://www.welshhealth.com is worth a visit. If it does not have the information you need it can point you in the right direction.

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