- Monday, November 9th, 2009
- Written By Luke Gilkerson
- Categories: Pornography Addiction Back to Blog Home
Porn Withdrawal Symptoms
I remember when I was buried deep in porn addiction: it seemed each day was a fight to avoid the inevitable. At the time I didn’t understand why my body would seem to take control. There were so many nights I would walk zombie-like to Internet porn or phone sex in search of my fix. And when I would white-knuckle it, the withdrawal symptoms would kick in.
Have you ever experienced withdrawal symptoms when trying to avoid porn? Linda L. Simmons, Psy.D., says this is simply a part of the addictive cycle, “When pornography is stopped, withdrawal symptoms will likely be experienced—irritability, anxiety, frustration, and so forth.”
Marnia Robinson, author of Cupid’s Poisoned Arrow, collected the testimonies from many men about this. She recently reported this on the Huffington Post:
“The whole day I have been shaking with jitters similar to how it felt when I quit smoking.”
“Intense bouts of anger leading to interpersonal difficulties, aggressive demeanor, easily stressed out, . . . suicidal ideation, severe depression, violent dreams, . . . insomnia, hallucinations, . . . ‘insects’ crawling all over me in bed, shakes, mania, . . . and inability to concentrate.”
“. . . I didn’t recognize I had an addiction until I had surgery and masturbation wasn’t an option for fifteen days. On day three, I was literally shaking, and I began to connect the dots. Other symptoms: irritability, inability to focus (‘staring at walls syndrome’), mood swings, headaches (sometimes quite strong), sense of pressure in my genitals, flashbacks, paranoia, self-defeating thinking, depression, hopelessness, and fear that I will never have sex because I’ve learned no social skills since diving into porn eight years ago as a teen.”
“No matter how many orgasms I have, I never feel satisfied; I just finally collapse in exhaustion, and start again the next day.”
“I’m more anxious or depressed, and I have a strong desire to avoid other people.”
You can read the extremely long thread of comments on her blog from men who reported these symptoms.
Call it what you like—addiction, compulsion, fixation—habitual porn use is much like any drug addiction, only the drug our body craves is its own neurochemistry—a fix of dopamine and other hormones.
Do you ever experience withdrawal symptoms?
Yes, all the time but the thing is I am a Overcomer by the blood of the Lamb and the word of my testimony which God gave me! all Men have problems with Lust but you must discipline your flesh into submission. your are not a slave to sin and a servant to God
@Michael – Amen! Thanks for the encouragement.
Amen Michael
I would like if you would also talk more about the girls affected by pornography addiction, because girls have this problem, too. It’s a little hard to relate when you only speak like guys are affected by this problem.
@Alex – We have a whole category about this topic, if you are interested. We actually dedicated a week to the topic back in August this year. Please click on “Women and Porn Addiction” and receive more information.
Interesting discussion. I find that most of the men I work with don’t have significant withdrawal symptoms. When we really get at what is driving the cravings, and remove the cravings, then the withdrawal symptoms don’t seem to come up.
@Arden – That’s good. I’m sure for those struggling on their own with this the withdrawal symptoms can be more pronounced, for sure.
Luke, Any suggestions for how to curb the temptation to access porn on a work computer that won’t accept the CE software? I can’t do much with the computer because it is the company’s computer and I can’t remove a firewall if they have it up.
the accountability you need on a work computer should be the fact that if you get caught you are very likely to be fired.
Porn is also degrading to men as well because its telling all men that ALL women are only pleased with a super sized penis. Not true! And it brainwashes women into believing that’s what they need.