Experts weigh in pornography addiction and assess whether it can be considered an addiction in the true sense of the world. According to experts, being addicted to porn is not as rare as many thinks, but it cannot be considered in the same category as drugs and alcohol.
According to Gail Saltz, MD, a psychology editor and contributor of Health magazine, anyone with a net connection is prone to getting addicted to porn. This is not similar to sex addiction, which require a sexual partner.
Saltz also explained that porn addiction cannot be categorized as a physiological addiction like drug or alcoholic addictions. Instead, it is a form of behavioral addiction. "With behavioral addictions, you won't have physical withdrawal symptoms, which are the hallmark of physiological addictions," she said. "But there's evidence to suggest that [behavioral addictions] do similarly engage the dopamine reward system in the brain, and when you try to stop, it's made difficult by your brain chemistry."
Psychotherapist and sexuality counselor Ian Kerner, PhD however, refuses to call it an addiction. "I am careful with using words like 'addiction' and 'disease' in regards to an out-of-control behavior," he said.
While both experts cannot agree, they said that watching too much porn to the point that it affects one's daily functioning is a sign of other mental health issues. It may be a sign of an anxiety disorder that is being relieved by watching porn. Most porn addicts admit that watching too much porn is affecting their romantic relationships negatively.
Moreover, Dr. Saltz added that being addicted to porn makes a person susceptible to being diagnosed with other types of addictions. "Somebody who develops a porn addiction might have other things they are obsessive about," she said. "When someone who has an obsessive personality is in a negative mood, they may seek stimulation to feel better."