You might be here because all that you think often is about sex. Or you might be worried if you are addicted to sex, because you’re always thinking about it. Well, there’s nothing to worry as you’re not the only one going through this phase.

Mykare Health is here to discuss what is sex addiction, its negative effects, and some tips to overcome these uncontrollable sexual thoughts. Once you understand this concept, you’ll be in a better place to realise if you are addicted to sex or not.

We will discuss the various solutions too.

Have you also heard about different kinds of myths related to sexual activities? While some tend to consider sex before marriage a sin, some others believe having sexual desires isn’t right.

First thing first, thinking about sex is absolutely fine.

What Is Sex Addiction? (Compulsive Sexual Behaviour Disorder)

Sexual thoughts and sexual activities are incredible for human beings to reproduce in the next generation. So, involving in these activities are a normal part of our life.

When these sexual desires, urges and activities start affecting your daily work, it will badly influence your life. You might not be able to focus on what you do. All that you can do will be shrinked to thinking about sex.

This condition is called as sex addiction. It is scientifically named as compulsive sexual behaviour disorder.

Not all sexual thoughts are due to sex addiction. The first step to understand if you are sex addicted is to ask yourself a question: Do these sexual thoughts affect your work/quality of life? If yes, then you might be dealing with sex addiction.

Here are the major causes & symptoms of compulsive sexual behaviour :-

Negative Effects Of Compulsive Sexual Behaviour

1. Break Down Of Trust

If one partner in a relationship is struggling with sex addiction, it can affect the other partner as well. The sex addicted partner may engage in some secretive behaviour or actions. This can break the trust of the relationship.

2. Emotional Distance

The sex addicted partner can become emotionally unavailable or detached. It can create a sense of abandonment or rejection in the other partner.

3. Intimacy Issues

Usually, a sex addicted person can give more priority to sexual activities rather than emotional intimacy. A genuine intimacy between the partners is beyond physical closeness. Sex addiction is a barrier to the development of intimacy between them.

4. Low Self Esteem

As we know, a sex addicted person will not have a genuine emotional intimacy towards his/her partner. Naturally, this will create a feeling of worthlessness and a negative self image in the other partner.

5. Sexual Dissatisfaction

You know that there are a lot of problems created by sex addiction. But, this condition majorly affects your partner and his/her mental health. Because, they may feel lonely or rejected as you are not showing much intimacy towards them.

Moreover, there is a pressure to engage in sexual activities to satisfy your sex addicted partner.

6. Exacerbating Mental Health Issues

Risk Factors

The excessive sexual thoughts can affect men as well as women. But, it is majorly seen in men than in women.

Anyone can go through compulsive sexual behaviour, irrespective of their sexual orientation. However, there are certain other risk factors that could increase compulsive sexual behaviour. Like:

Sex addiction can cause different types of mental health issues such as depression, anxiety etc. These mental health issues can further badly affect your relationship.

• Easy Availability Of Sexual Contents: In this fast moving world, it is easy for anyone with a mobile and internet connection to access anything they want. So you can imagine it is easier for people to get exposed to sexual contents.

When a sex addicted person is an internet user, the risk becomes high. There are different kinds of ads that are sexually compelling to you. To avoid these distractions, it takes a lot of courage and focus in life.

- Privacy: As you may know, the nature of excessive thoughts demands privacy. This can lead your condition to become even more worse.

• Risks are high for certain people who :

Uses alcohol/drugs.

Have mental health issues like depression, anxiety etc.

Have a traumatic sexual abuse.

Have family members who have some kind of addiction.

Top 7 Tips To Avoid Sex Thoughts

1. Acceptance & Mindfulness

You don’t have to try to suppress and fight with these thoughts. You can just accept the fact that you are sex addicted. But don’t ever judge yourself for it.

Being a sex addicted person, there are chances where you think you are the only one in this situation. But the truth says the opposite. There are many people, about millions, who go through similar situations. So, don’t even think about it.

You may have sex thoughts quite often. But being mindful about it will considerably impact your response towards these thoughts in a productive way.

2. Practice Mindfulness Meditation

Practising mindfulness meditation can help you to take control of your mind. In this way, it can be easier for you to be aware of what you think and feel. Then you will learn how to focus on what is happening around you and to observe your own thoughts and feelings.

3. Limited Exposure To Sexual Contents

The contents you watch daily can influence your thoughts and feelings as well. So, you can always be aware of what type of content you watch.

To limit your increased sexual thoughts, you need to limit watching sexual contents. The sexual contents might be on a website, TV shows, or movies. This can trigger your sexual thoughts and feelings.

4. Talk To Someone

Do not hesitate to communicate with a mental health professional. You must have clear talks about your situation to help yourself get through this situation.

5. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy

A kind of behavioural therapy used by mental health professionals, cognitive behavioural therapy is used to point out and change negative patterns, thoughts or emotions.

Once you change your thoughts and behaviours, you can avoid sex addiction. By changing your thoughts and behaviours, you can influence your thoughts and emotions positively.

6. Healthy Lifestyle

You can maintain a balanced diet, get enough sleep and reduce the stress in your life. Because, all these factors can influence your thought patterns.

7. Engage In Activities

One of the major reasons for always thinking about sex is because your attention wanders everywhere. If you can engage in activities that need your full attention, it can help you out. These activities can be your hobbies like reading or any sports that need your attention.

Throughout this blog, you have learned about the causes, symptoms, negative effects and solutions for dealing with excessive sexual thoughts. The potential causes of compulsive sexual behavior (sex addiction) includes sex hormonal imbalance, mental health disorders, past sexual abuse trauma etc.

The first step to tackle sex addiction is to understand the cause behind it. You can find it through the help of a professional expert. They will provide you the required support and guidance.

Moreover, it is important to talk about it to someone you trust. Because, this is high time to start having open conversations about sexual and mental health issues. Mykare Health can help you connect to the expert minds who can help you get through this.