We’re all trying to find ways to motivate ourselves but sometimes our vices get the better of us. One vice many people suffer from is addiction in some way, shape, or form.
One form of addiction that occurs is sex addiction. While it isn’t a mental illness in the DSM-5 there are signs that sex may be an overabundant part of your thinking process.
There are ways to curb this, and ways for you to properly see if you’re just really in the mood for sex or a sign of something more.
1. Obsessive Thoughts
Many people who are obsessed or addicted to something tend to have persistent and chronic thoughts on the subject. In our case, sex of course. These fantasies typically interfere with the responsibilities that you have and become a problem because you can’t do anything else but this.
2. Excessive Time on Sex
Sex is something that you do spend time on in some cases of course, but in the case of sex addiction, if someone is spending ALL their time on sex, that’s a red flag. This includes spending time getting sex, being sexual, having sex, or even just recovering from sex. It’s virtually all that you do, and you let your other commitments go by the wayside in place of sex.
3. Shame and Depression
Some people experience shame and depression when they have sex. This means that they feel shameful, anxious, and regretful for their sexual urges. They might feel bad for the urges period, or even shame and feeling bad for being unable to control the urges.
It’s not uncommon for a sexual compulsion to also come along with anxiety, depression, and even social anxiety, so they are connected with one another.
4. Excluding Others or Commitments
Sex addicts might get to the point where they’re unable to focus on anything else.
They tend to put the other responsibilities by the wayside. For example, they may skip out on work, fall behind on work, skip out on talking to others that aren’t related to sex such as family or even become withdrawn socially.
They might also focus on sex over other hobbies or even types of relaxation. This can also cause issues with your partner, including relationships suffering because of the exclusion of said activities.
5. Engaging in Risky behaviors
Public sex, exhibitionism, and sex without protection are oftentimes behaviors that someone who is a sex addict might engage in.
This can lead to problems down the line, from engaging in criminal offenses, or in some cases the transmission of STIs such as HIV and others. It’s very risky, and since sex addicts also are likely to cheat on their partners, this can cause a lot of problems down the line.
6. What If I am Showing Signs
If you’re showing signs the best way to know for sure is to look into this and take your time to ensure that you know you’re addicted, or maybe just suffering from other issues.
If you do believe there are signs you’re showing sex addiction, you can go to Mind Diagnostics and take their test to help you see if you suffer from sex addiction or not. If you do, it’s good for you to seek out help in the form of counseling or other means.
If sex addiction is making you do criminal activities, the best thing for you to do is to get help immediately for the problem at hand. If you do believe sex is becoming addictive in your life, the best thing to do is to get help now before things get worse down the line, so get the help you need before it’s too late.