The Far-Reaching Consequences of Untreated Sex Addiction by Janice Stanton
Sex addiction is more debilitating and widespread than many people seem to realize. Due to the frivolous manner in which this psychological impairment is portrayed in popular media, many people suffering from sex addiction don’t believe their problem is bad enough to warrant treatment. When impairment as serious as sex addiction is treated like a playful quirk on television and in movies, a good portion of the public will come to view it in a less serious light. As a result, a staggering number of genuine sex addicts never summon the strength to seek treatment.
Although there are varying levels of sex addiction, everyone grappling with this illness is urged to seek professional help. Just like drug and alcohol addictions, sex addiction can have a litany of unfavorable consequences if treatment isn’t sought in a timely manner. If enough time passes, sex addiction can take over your entire life, making it virtually impossible to lead a normal existence. There’s no denying that overcoming sex addiction represents a tremendous challenge, but the consequences of allowing it to fester can be far-reaching, to say the least. Not treating sex addiction in its earliest stages can result in the following ramifications.
Difficulty at Work
Sex addiction has the power to dramatically inhibit your performance at work. Many sex addicts are unable to concentrate on anything else until their baser instincts have been acted upon, so if your addiction flares up while you’re at the office, you’re in for a world of trouble. Completing tasks on-schedule, being attentive during meetings and overseeing group projects are impossible if your mind is consistently elsewhere. Additionally, certain sex addicts won’t hesitate to engage in masturbation or other acts of intimacy in the workplace. Not only is such behavior liable to get you fired, it may even result in criminal charges being filed.
Damaged Personal Relationships
Like any other addiction, sex addiction can put a tremendous strain on personal relationships – and in some cases, damage them irreparably. If you frequently blow off friends or family member in favor of feeding your addiction, your loved ones are liable to think you’re upset with them. Furthermore, if you have a spouse or significant other, he or she is likely to find your obsession with sex very troubling. Since sex addicts often cheat on their partners and make unreasonable demands of them in the bedroom, sex addiction is notorious for killing relationships. Lone Star State residents determined to save their relationships and kick sex addiction to the curb on can find an experienced sex therapist dallas at LifeWorks Recovery.
Dramatically Altered Sex Drive
The more sex addicts act on their desires, the more explicit their sexual preferences become. As a result, things that once elicited feelings of arousal no longer have any real effect on their libidos. In order to make up for this, many sex addicts will turn to more extreme methods of achieving sexual gratification. However, this gratification is always short-lived. In their quest to find new avenues of arousal, addicts often wind up hurting themselves and causing long-term damage to their sex drives.
As any recovering addict can confirm, overcoming an addiction just might be the hardest thing you’ll ever do. Even so, after finding the power to beat an all-encompassing addiction, you’ll discover inner strength you never knew you possessed. Ridding yourself of sex addiction is no walk in the park, but seeking treatment before the problem gets out of hand will ultimately make things much easier for you and the people you care about.
About the Author: Janice Stanton is a Dallas-based software engineer and recovering sex addict. When working to overcome her addiction, she sought treatment at LifeWorks Recovery, where she underwent a recovery program that changed her life forever.