Living with Sex Addiction

People with addictions to alcohol, drugs, gambling, shopping and more recently overeating are openly encouraged to seek treatment through rehab or twelve step programs.  There is another group of addicts, however, that are still not widely discussed in the media.  I am referring to sex addicts.

Spotting a sex addict is not an easy task.  They come from all backgrounds, both sexes, all ages and all income levels.   There is no way to no if your neighbor, priest, boss, teacher, relative, etc., suffers from this terrible affliction.  They are experts at hiding their destructive behavior to all those around them.  There are no outward physical signs that point to them, although they may be doing physical damage to themselves that remains unseen to others.  Statistics show that a great majority of sex addicts were abused as children either physically, sexually or emotionally.  Thus, they are already very proficient at keeping things a secret as they were conditioned to as a child.  They also often possess multiple addictions.  Relatives or friends of a sex addict may be fully aware of the other addictions and completely ignorant of their primary problem.

So how do you know if you or someone you know is a sex addict?  The technical definition of sexual addiction is any sexually related, compulsive behavior that interferes with normal living and causes severe stress on oneself, family, friends, loved ones, and one's work environment.  The compulsive behavior an addict displays controls every aspect of their life until it becomes unmanageable.  Examples of compulsive behavior include:  compulsive masturbation, compulsive heterosexual and/or homosexual relationships, pornography, prostitution, exhibitionism, voyeurism, indecent phone calls, incest, child molestation, rape and violence.  While the latter behaviors are the most extreme, the behaviors that may appear to be more 'mild' can unravel the very fabric of a sex addict's life and cause them to become suicidal.