The pornography industry has permeated the American culture at a speed that no one could have imagined over the past ten years. With the introduction of cybersex, the devastating consequences are now playing out through escalating cases of sexual addiction, marriages failing, and careers collapsing; consequently, a generation of young people are numb to a sex- saturated culture—a generation lost without tools to navigate their way. Millions of young people are being victimized and robbed by an industry that understands the powerful grip of its alluring commodity.
Dr. Patrick Carnes, a leading national expert and author on pornography addiction, warns that America has a “social tsunami” coming. This first generation that has grown up with the Internet is now trying to form marriages, and some are finding they’re handicapped in their ability to form true, lasting intimacy within their relationships due to long-term exposure to pornography. Headlines are now being filled with the names of high profile individuals whose lives have spun out of control due to uncontrolled sexual appetites that are acted out in very destructive behaviors. It is critical that a concerted effort be made (on a global level) to confront a potentially crippling force that threatens the psychological, emotional, and physical health of the next generation.
AWARE is a nationally recognized youth development program that has pioneered an educational model to help educate young people about the potential risks associated with the use of pornography. Our mission is to educate teens on how to avoid high risk behaviors that can jeopardize future goals. In turn, teens are empowered to make healthy choices that result in teens reaching their dreams and hopes for their future.
Our program, Illusions – Uncovering the Truth About Pornography, has been launched in public schools throughout SW Washington and is now one of the most requested presentations AWARE has to offer. It began in 2004 when one teacher shared with us the destructive behaviors her son was experiencing due to his porn/sexual addiction. She was emphatic about the need for someone to start addressing this societal issue, especially with young people. It was soon evident that this struggle is now widespread and teens need to be educated about the potential harmful effects. This program has been marketed and distributed to other youth programs in the US along with requests from youth programs outside the US. We have, however, just begun to skim the surface at addressing this social cancer.
AWARE believes that knowledge is power, and teens deserve vital information that can protect them from a life-long struggle of broken relationships and heartache.
To order Illusions or learn more about our programs, please visit www.IllusionsProgram.net.
This post is by AWARE’s Program Director, Tammie Honeycutt. Tammie graduated in 2002 from Concordia University with a degree in Management and Communications. She’s been a volunteer for Boys and Girls Club of America, Self-Enhancement, Inc., and her home church. Most of her experience comes from insurance claims administration after working for one of the nations top insurance companies for 9+ years. She is married to Duane and has five children.
That interesting. Might they translate the material into Spanish? It would be very useful.
@Esteban – I can ask them.
the word tells us that the thief comes to steal kill and destroy. well he has found a tool in internet pornography to rip the life from any man or woman that should happen to peak into the devils toolbox. i guarantee he will find a tool designed just for your demise. i thank God for tools like covenant eyes and AWARE that give us the added power to kick this habit of lies.
being the parent of teenage daughter i am very aware of the dangers that await her. i would love to get some more info to go to schools and spread the word so to speak. please send me a packet or something so i can get this started. thanks
In addition, I’d like to add that this feels like the opening seen of Saving Private Ryan. It just feels like so many are going to get sucked in no matter what we do. And just the same, as soon as the front gate dropped on the landing craft, we knew at least the first five rows of guys were dead on arrival.
I might add, that when I think about this, I get that dreadful feeling that we’re just going to have casualties all over the place. I liken it to watching Saving Private Ryan in the first few scenes just knowing as soon as those landing craft hit the beach, at the least the first five rows of guys are dead on arrival. It just makes me sick.
Excellent. Obviously this will never reduce a parent’s job of educating their children on this cancer. But, that said, for those kids whose parents are stuck “in the cycle” and won’t teach their children about the affect porn has on all aspects of life, this could be a life saver. I can only wish something like this would have been around when I was younger. There’s no telling what kind of impact this teaching might have had.
I can speak from first hand knowledge that porn completely and totally warped and confused my mind. Through college I was so addicted and so selfish that I didn’t focus on really achieving any goals I set. I actually had a place I knew I wanted to be within 5 and 10 years, but this disease so confiscated any ability I had to focus and think, I just lost it. I would imagine that is what Carnes refers to as the unmanageability that porn creates. Porn addiction absolutely robbed me of nearly 20 years. For me, it wasn’t too late and I didn’t lose absolutely everything. I hope the kids this program teaches will get that aspect of what porn does.