Is there such as thing as sex addiction?

[Swellegant]

Sex addiction is indeed a real thing. Where you draw the line between addiction and having more sex than the average Joe comes down to why you do it and how it affects the rest of your life. For the addict, there is little or no joy in the act, it is simply a compulsion.

I don't know what's going on with Tiger Woods (nor do I really care), but you have to admit that his sexual behavior is affecting the rest of his life. It certainly ruined his marriage, and it destroyed a public image that was a large part of his livelihood. He has gone from one of America's most respected public figures to America's dirtiest joke (for this month, anyway) because of his compulsion, whether addictive or recreational, to fuck around. Sounds like a candidate for the Twelve Steps to me.

 

[Seasoned]

It is real. If you are gay or bi and addicted the best path of recovery is SAA or SCA, http://www.sca-recovery.org/.

 

[unloadonme]

According to Wikipedia there is.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexual_addiction

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypersexuality

 

[Harke the Boeotarch]

Hello. My name is Harke the Boeotarch, and I´ve got a problem...

 

[midnight81]

There is definitely such a thing as sexual addiction. I've been dealing with sexual addiction since for 11-12 years and it's nothing like being sexually promiscuous. In fact, the idea that Tiger Woods is a sexual addict just because he slept around and cheated on his wife is pretty insulting to those who are actually dealing with sex addiction. Maybe he is a sex addict but we can't know that unless we know more than the number of partners he had.

A sex addict doesn't have sex because they're horny, although that can be one catalyst. A sex addict is compelled to have sex because of something that is wrong with them, some issue that needs to be resolved. They have unsafe sex, sex that can get them arrested or killed, sex that they know deep down that they don't want to be having but can't stop themselves. They make excuses, rationalize their actions, and get mad at people who try to help them, just like a drug addict or alcoholic.

When you're a sex addict, you lie to your friends and family about where you are and what you've been doing, you shirk your responsibilities because feeling that rush you get from sex (not the orgasm, the hormonal surge or exhilaration and other things) is your number one priority. You spend money you don't have on porn, sex toys, phone sex lines, cabs home from a strange neighborhood in the middle of the night, etc.

It's not the amount of sexual encounters that defines a sex addict but, as Swellegant touched on above, the reasons why you're doing it and the things you are doing/risks you are taking and how it will impact your life. Obviously all of those things above aren't things that every sex addict goes through; that's just my own personal experience. But those are some of the warning signs and it's a good example of the difference between sex addiction and promiscuity.

I hope that helped at least one person.

 

[mbamike]

Yes. I understand that Tiger Woods is in rehab now for the problem.

 

[BrownBoi89]

Although it has yet to be covered in any psychology courses I've taken, I believe it exists. Whether or not Tiger Woods has it is another story.