By Open HouseThursday 29 Jan 2015Open House InterviewsChristian LivingReading Time: 2 minutes
Honestly speaking, the world we live in is moving away from overly the Victorian mindset, avoiding sexual connotation entirely, to overly sexualising almost every element of our society. Wheaton’s professor William Struthers discloses the causes of a pornography addiction and how to pull yourself out of it.
Men and women are affected differently by porn, due to structural differences between the male and female brain and also by context. Men are more sensitive to visual cues that activate the part of their brain responsible for addiction, whereas women are drawn in more by context (romantic desires, etc.) and are more recently being groomed into pornography addiction through their environment.
On a neurological level, those viewing pornographic images on a regular basis are rewiring their brain to respond to porn, releasing a chemical high, which can actually change the structure of the brain. William Struthers likens our sexuality to a muscle that can be trained; the way in which we exercise our sexuality (engaging in healthy relationships, etc.) can strengthen the muscle in a positive way so that we can direct our preferences away from porn. In a similar way that alcoholics misuse alcohol, porn addicts misuse pornography to satisfy a desire. That being said, William Struthers believes that pornography doesn’t have an appropriate use as it can ruin the sanctity of the sacred moment of sex through broadcasting across the internet.
One of the first steps is uncovering why you are using porn and try to satisfy that need in other ways
To recover from a pornography addiction, Struthers encourages that in the same way you trained your brain to be addicted to porn, you can also train it to take you back to a better place. One of the first steps is uncovering why you are using porn and try to satisfy that need in other ways or redirecting your sexual energy into more healthy activities. The first step to recovery is finding a non-judgemental third party to disclose your addiction to, one who can help you get onto a better path. Then to start rewiring the brain and training yourself so that porn cannot fulfil your needs anymore.
To people with partners suffering from porn addiction, remember it is most likely not because of you and avoid self-shaming yourself as a result of their actions. Instead love them by calling them to a standard of integrity, cooperate with them in the process and understand the journey may take time and sacrifice.