Cybersex

Cybersex has of course replaced phone sex for convenience and accessibility and cybersex can also be found for free. Cybersex is available to any of the 60 million internet users and is especially dangerous to the 2 million sexually addicted internet users according to the National Council on Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity. Cybersex is especially dangerous to the sexual addict because it reinforces behaviors that allow the addiction to grow stronger. Anonymity, isolation, fantasy and sexual images are all elements of cybersex that reinforce sexual addiction. The internet and resulting cybersex does not create sexual addiction but if a problem exists in the individual, the internet can easily become an extension of their sexual addiction and add to mounting consequences.

Through the millions of pay-per-view pornography websites, free porn websites and peer-to-peer exchange programs such as Morpheus and Kazaa, sexual addicts are able to exchange, view and save to disc all sorts of pornography. The amounts of pornography available allow sexual addiction to run rampant without check. Some researchers even suggest that the ease and availability of pornography on the net does cause a quicker progression of sexual addiction in some who would otherwise be more constrained by their environment.

A sexual stimulus does reinforce itself in those who are susceptible to sexual addiction. Addicts receive the same reward arousal in the brain's pleasure center as cocaine and amphetamine addicts. Addiction is characterized by obsessive thoughts about obtaining and using sex and compulsive, uncontrollable sexual behavior. Cybersex addiction is progressive like any disease and takes up more and more time and continues to interfere with normal living. Activities and relationships that interfere with cybersex are reduced and the cycle of fantasy and isolation is further reinforced.

Sexual addiction does not stop with cybersex and further consequences can be created by engaging in extramarital affairs, prostitution, and risking disease exchange through multiple, anonymous sexual encounters.

If you or a loved one is experiencing difficulties with cybersex, if it is affecting your relationships, work or finances, it is time to seek help. Spencer Recovery Centers has helped thousands of callers find the help they need. Our toll-free hotline is staffed by professional counselors who can answer your questions about addiction and refer you to an effective support group or treatment center that will help you with your situation. The call is completely confidential so please call today.