The Internet has "vastly increased" the susceptibility of men and women to become addicted to pornography according to Dr. Stefanie Carnes as reported in the Miami Herald.
"Sex addiction is a compulsive behavior that completely dominates the person's life," explained Dr. Carnes, a certified sex therapist from Mississippi. "They are willing to sacrifice what they cherish most in order to preserve and continue their unhealthy behavior."
The availability of pornography on the Internet and the anonymity of searching from within your own home leads men and women, who otherwise may not have looked at pornography, or developed an addiction, into a "destructive and expensive" problem.
Dr. Carnes cited studies from N2H2, a computer security firm that showed the number of pornographic web pages rising from 14 million in 1998 to over 372 million in 2005. In August of 2005 alone 82 million people visited adult websites; 30% of those were women.
For many, the addiction isn't about sex. Looking at pornography becomes a sort of coping mechanism. "We have patients spending six to eight hours a day on the Internet," Dr. Carnes said. "`It's not about sex. It's about escape and medication."
Some addicts act further on their urges, increasing demand for prostitution,sex trafficking, and child pornography. Not all addicts will go to these extremes - but they do cause emotional stress on families and marriages, and sometimes put families at financial risk.
The Internet should serve our needs - allowing individuals to choose for themselves if they want pornography and its potential problems and dangers in their homes.
The CP80 Foundation is pleased to offer free training to individuals who wish to learn more about the Internet, pornography, current laws and the CP80 Internet Channel Initiative.
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