Most types of addiction can grow more serious over time. Of course sex addiction is not any different from any other type of addiction. It can become increasingly all-consuming and severe if left untreated. The problem with sex addiction is that sex addicts can appear to be completely normal for a much longer period of time when compared to a drug or alcohol addict. Other addictions such as over-eating and gambling are much more obvious and show clear outward signs such as financial trouble and health. However any type of addiction can prove to make it difficult to function at a normal capacity in the world.
Although Sex Addiction Can Feel Healthy It’s Not
People who suffer from sex addiction can remain high functioning for many years. This is especially true if it is the only addiction in which a person suffers. Sex addiction is compartmentalized in such a manner that it allows an addict to secretly indulge in their addictive behavior without being noticed. Of course being normal is more of an act with a sex addict, which allows them to fool themselves for a very long time.
Know the Signs of Sex Addiction
Some of the ways sex addiction manifests and the underlying mechanisms are different per addict. Sex addiction changes over time. The reasons why sex addiction escalates is both psychological and physical. An addict’s brain becomes used to a behavior over time. The enjoyment of that experience or behavior eventually becomes replaced with the craving for it. Soon thereafter the experience of liking it is replaced with wanting it. Over time the obsession may even lose the fun or attraction. This can cause a sex addict to seek different or extreme stimuli so they can experience the ‘fun’ again. Essentially this can mean they delve into new sexual behavior such as seeking more violent or high risk interactions. With counseling for sex addiction this type of behavior can be diagnosed as paraphilias or fetishes.
Sex Addicts Can Live a Life of Denial
A sex addict tends to lead a double life of secrecy and deception. This can be associated to the shame they feel concerning what they are doing secretly while still being afraid of the consequences if their addiction becomes known. Addicts are inclined to go to great lengths to keep their addiction secret. It is easier to engage in denial than to justify both their feelings of shame and their deception. In most cases the first signs of sexual addiction could be mentally written off as a fluke. However, it is more than a fluke when the addiction continues to grow, and an addict continually finds ways to deny their behavior.
