Unity Restored

• Are you using the internet more frequently and/or for a longer time for sex-related activities?
• Are you spending less time with your spouse and kids or other (live) people?
• Are you becoming less productive in your work?
• Do you feel that you need to view more (or more intense) pornography? (This could be a symptom of tolerance.)
• When you don’t use porn, do you experience anxiety, difficulty concentrating, or restlessness and unease? (These could be symptoms of withdrawal.)
• Are you growing increasingly more obsessed with viewing pornographic images?
• You can’t seem to stop viewing (or you stop for a while, only to start up again)--despite adverse consequences to personal health, career, significant relationships, or spiritual life?

Read more [+]

TEST YOURSELF

Cybersex/Pornography Addiction is a specific sub-type of Internet addiction. Estimates suggest that 1 in 5 Internet addicts are engaged in some form of online sexual activity (primarily viewing cyberporn and/or engaging in cybersex). Studies show that men are more likely to view cyberporn, while women are more likely to engage in erotic chat. People who suffer from low self-esteem, a distorted body image, untreated sexual dysfunction, or a prior sexual addiction are more at risk to develop cybersex/cyberporn addictions.

Do you think you might have a problem?

Go to www.netaddiction.com to take an online test with immediate results.

Read more [+]

HOW IT HURTS YOU

Everybody is doing it, so what’s the big deal? Here are some of the consequences of porn use.

• Distorted perceptions about sexuality
• Decreased desire for relational sex
• Increased appetite for deviant sex
• Correlation between exposure to pornography and aggressive behavior
• Increased appetite for more deviant and bizarre types of pornography.

"Source: Manning, 2006"

Read more [+]

HOW IT HURTS YOUR RELATIONSHIPS & YOUR FAMILY

• Your Relationships

  Pornography does not enhance your sexual life; instead, it has a seriously negative impact on the user’s relational sexual life. Research shows that porn users have decreased desire for relational sex, and one’s partner feels angry and devastated. Pornography leads to betrayal, secrets, and lies. It makes a lie out of intimacy and causes even deeper isolation.

• Your Family

  “The most tragic and frightening victim of the scourge of pornography is the family” (Bishop Loverde)

Read more [+]

HOW IT HURTS YOUR SPIRITUAL LIFE

When you view pornography, you are taking part in the serious degradation of the men, women and children who are used by the industry of pornography.

• Pornography in the media is a "violation, through the use of audiovisual techniques, of the right to privacy of the human body (Pontifical Council for Social Communications, 1989)
• Pornography treats you (and those whose images you view) as objects.   This is degrading to the human person, who is a subject and never an object
• It is a sin, possibly a grave sin

Read more [+]

FAQ

• Isn’t pornography just a harmless form of entertainment?

Read more [+]

DOES HE HAVE A PROBLEM?

• Is he accessing online pornography, chatting online about sex-related topics, or playing sexually explicit video games?
• Is he using the internet more frequently and/or for a longer time?
• Is he growing increasingly more obsessed with viewing pornographic images?
• Is he spending less time with family members or with other interpersonal relationships?
• Is he showing less interest in interpersonal sexual relations or becoming more interested in bizarre or uncomfortable sexual activities?
• Is he getting up in the middle of the night to use the computer?
• Does reviewing the “history” of the computer reveal pornographic sites?

Read more [+]

DOES SHE NEED HELP

The predominant consumers of pornography are young males. (Buzzell, 2005). The percentage of male users of the internet is roughly double that of female users. Although many believe that female users of pornography will increase, the changing demographics of consumption are not yet reflected in the research (Manning, 2006).

Read more [+]

HOW PORN HURTS YOUR RELATIONSHIPS

• Exposure to pornography causes decreased satisfaction in relational sex (Zillman, 1988)
• Porn use causes decreased sexual desire (Bergner, 2002)
• Porn use causes sense of being used by partner (Bergner, 2002)
• Compulsive cybersex causes decreased sexual intimacy (Schneider, 1998)
• Those who engage in online sexual activity also show an increase in masturbation (Cooper, 2004)
• Addiction to pornography is a major contributing factor to separation and divorce (Schneider, 2000)
• Individuals who use porn are more likely to engage in extramarital affairs (Stack et al 2004)
• Women view cybersex as a form of infidelity (Bridges, 2003)

Read more [+]

HOW PORN HURTS KIDS

Viewing pornography is very dangerous for young people. Healthy children do not wish to be exposed to pornography. There are severe risks associated with early exposure.

Kids today use the internet constantly—to chat with friends, send emails and instant messages, to watch movies and listen to music, and to do research for school projects. Many teens (and even preteens who lie about their age) use popular websites such as MySpace to post pictures and information about themselves. Yet nearly 1 in 5 children who are on-line regularly is approached to have sex (Conner, 2006).

A premature exposure to pornography--especially to deviant sex--can influence a child’s healthy love and sexual development. A home in which the possibility for exposure and access to sexual sites creates a sexualized energy that permeates the house will negatively affect the child’s psychosexual and spiritual development. Premature and repeated exposure of children to deviant sex either in real life or in pornographic materials may be traumatic;  it may increase the likelihood that the child will himself use pornography, and even may be experienced as a form of sexual abuse.

Read more [+]

INTEGRATIVE SOLUTIONS

Catholic tradition has always recognized the unity of the human person in body and spirit. It is the whole person who is uniquely created by God with intellect and freedom of will, who is called to friendship with God through faith in Jesus Christ, and who is formed in holiness through a life of virtue and participation in the Sacraments of the Church.

Because of the interconnection of physical and spiritual attributes in the person, human health depends on the right ordering of both the body and the soul. This includes one’s emotional life and desires. The right ordering of one’s relationship to God depends not only on spiritual qualities, such as one’s strength of faith, it also owes a great deal to one’s mental health.

www.aoccs.org

www.catholictherapists.com

Read more [+]

TALKING TO KIDS

Children spend a vast amount of time on the internet—talking with friends through instant messages or in chat rooms, listening to music or playing video games, and doing research for school. Yet, research indicates that nearly 1 out of 5 children who use the internet regularly is approached to engage in sex (Conner, 2006). 70 % of youth aged 15-17 reported accidentally coming across pornography online (Manning, 2006). Recent incidents involving My Space have parents rightfully worried about what their children are posting about themselves on the internet and who is viewing it. Since children and teenagers are more vulnerable to internet pornography, it is imperative to set forth family guidelines for the use of the internet.

Read more [+]

TIPS FOR STRENGHTHENING YOUR MARRIAGE

Read more [+]