Masturbation is a natural and healthy part of life for both men and women, but it tends to have a negative perception and is considered a taboo topic.
However, masturbation needs to be discussed, as it helps normalize it and make it a part of sexual education.
Masturbation addiction is commonly seen in individuals because of the pleasurable feelings it provides. It usually occurs when a person no longer has control over their urges to masturbate and, consequently, compulsively engages in the behaviour. This can cause disruptions in everyday life and damage relationships.
Studies have discovered that among adolescents aged 14–17 years, around 74% of males and 48% of females engage in masturbation.
What is Masturbation Addiction?
The term masturbation addiction is used to refer to an urge to excessively masturbate. While masturbation addiction isn’t a clinical disease, someone can suffer symptoms such as fatigue, anxiety, depression and many more if they masturbate too much.
Here are some scenarios that indicate masturbation addiction
- Masturbating takes up a lot of your time during the day
- Your career and personal life are suffering because of excessive masturbation.
- You don’t feel like attending social events anymore and prefer to isolate yourself.
- You masturbate in an inappropriate place because you can’t control your urge till you are alone
- You treat it as an escape from your feelings such as anxiety, stress, or sadness
- You feel guilty for watching porn and masturbating.
- Masturbation is all you think about.
Types of Masturbation Addiction
Masturbation addiction can be of different types depending on frequency, intensity, and influence on daily life :
Some of the common types are:-
1] Chronic Masturbation
It is an actual issue that many individuals face, and because it is such a taboo topic, people struggle to seek help. People who engage in chronic masturbation masturbate at certain times of the day according to a particular schedule. They may need a specific place or situation for them to engage in this behaviour, which can be a reaction to an emotional or environmental trigger.
2] Excessive Masturbation
Excessive masturbation refers to masturbating much more than a healthy amount. This could mean multiple sessions lasting for several hours, to the point where it hinders daily activities and mental health.
3] Binge Masturbation
Binge masturbation is known as intense masturbation that occurs frequently over a short duration of time, often initiated by stress, loneliness, or other emotional aspects. Binge sessions can go on for hours leaving the person feeling drained and guilty.
These types of masturbation addiction often co-occur, and someone may experience them at different times. Addressing these issues often involves recognizing causes, and triggers, and sometimes seeking the help you need to establish a healthier relationship.
Signs and Symptoms of Masturbation Addiction
Here is an example of an experience of a 19-year single boy who overcame masturbation addiction –
He was facing many issues in his personal life which led to anxiety. This led to him watching porn and masturbating. He never realized how or when it got out of hand.
- His relationship with his close friends and family was damaged.
- He found himself isolating himself more often while staying home and masturbating throughout the day.
- Whenever he tried to speak to women, he couldn’t stop the feelings of guilt from watching porn and masturbating the night before.
- Who once used to top the class started failing in several subjects.
- He found himself zoning out many times during his focus hours.
- Masturbation became a coping mechanism for all of his issues, big or small.
- His mind was always filled with thoughts of sex, masturbation and porn even while doing something important.
These are some of the tell-tale symptoms of masturbation addiction. It is not too late to recognize the signs and get help.
According to a study by the International Society of Sexual Medicine, masturbation is more observed than sexual activity,
What are the Causes of Masturbation Addiction?
Doctors haven’t determined the exact causes of masturbation addiction, but research indicates that it could be related to other mental health disorders, including depression, anxiety, impulse control and bipolar disorders.
One study discovered that as many as 72% of people who suffer from sex-related addiction also have a mood disorder, while 38% have an anxiety disorder.
Some of the common causes of masturbation addiction are –
- underlying mental health conditions like depression, anxiety, and body dysmorphic disorder
- Trauma from the past
- A need to escape stress or difficult emotions
- A lack of healthy coping mechanisms or unhealthy ideas of sex.
- Some individuals may masturbate to replace feelings created by loneliness and boredom.
As with any kind of addiction, it is necessary to comprehend the underlying reasons so that they can be addressed and the addiction is better managed.
How is Masturbation Addiction Diagnosed?
Masturbation addiction can have a detrimental effect on a person’s life. It is better to recognize the signs early and get help. How do you know if you have a masturbation addiction?
Here are some ways to recognize if you are suffering from masturbation addiction –
Physical Effects: Weakness in bones, fatigue, dark circles, lower immunity, dizziness.
Sexual Health: Premature ejaculation, genital discomfort, STIs, infertility, no sexual pleasure.
Mental effects: Brain fog, memory problems, anger issues, irrational thoughts.
Social effects: Social isolation, decreased self-esteem, weakened self-identity
To understand the causes of masturbation addiction you can read this article on “Why am I addicted to masturbating?”
How To Get Rid Of Masturbation Addiction?
It can get really difficult to go from masturbating almost every day to not doing it at all. It helps to first begin with baby steps. And even these initial stages can take a long time and be difficult to achieve. Set up smaller goals and work your way up from there.
Whenever you feel the urge to masturbate then try out these tips to help masturbation addiction which can help you by distracting your mind and helping in focus on other things:
1] Spend time productively – It is essential to pick up a fun and healthy hobby, which a person enjoys doing. Certain activities such as sketching, outdoor sports, playing an instrument, and reading books not only keep one entertained but also improve cognitive and physical ability. The urge to masturbate can surely be controlled by doing this.
2] Socialize with people: People often masturbate when they are lonesome and seek company. It is, therefore, essential to stay connected with people so that you don’t feel like masturbating too often. It could help to join a dating site and engage with a romantic partner rather than masturbating.
3] Keep porn at bay: Pornography is the main thing that leads to masturbation. Some ways to get away from porn sites are enabling SafeSearch or installing an effective porn blocker such as BlockP on your device. Various BlockP products can be installed on any device you use to help you quit porn for good. With features such as AI blocking, password protection, customizable blocking and real-time detection there is no way that you would “accidentally” come across porn websites.
4] Meditation and Yoga: Yoga is an ancient relaxing method, which has numerous benefits for the body. It relaxes the muscles, regularises breathing, and helps you get in shape. Yoga is a good way to keep the mind at peace and stay away from masturbation.
5] Rubber band mechanism: It is a punishing mechanism that can be used when the thought of masturbation creeps into the mind. It can hit any part of the body and the mild pain will help the mind to focus and stop random thoughts that might be leading to masturbation.
6] Take a shower: Often taking a cold shower helps the body to calm down and also energizes the body and brings the scrotum temperature down. This greatly helps a person to abstain from masturbation addiction.
7] Make a realistic plan: There should always be a plan and realistic goals to tackle the most vulnerable points. When the body and the mind are on the point of giving up, one should have a final thought or action to avoid masturbation.
8] Listen to music: Often listening to music can bring you away from the thought of masturbation. The choice of music can be slow to fast, depending on the individual taste of music choices.
Treatments for Masturbation Addiction
Treatment for masturbation addiction goes beyond just practices to get to the root of the problem. The more extensive the treatment, the better. Depending on the severity of the addiction and personal preference, treatment may consist of a combination of therapy, medication and/or support groups.
Chronic Masturbation Therapy
It is essential to address all underlying disorders for the therapy to be effective. If other mental health problems are present, those should be taken care of on priority. Sometimes, a virtue agreement in which one abstains from masturbation is a start to help refrain from the action entirely.
Common topics that may arise during therapy for compulsive masturbation might include:
- Feelings and thoughts around masturbation
- Whether they take part in other sexually compulsive behaviours
- Issues caused by their masturbation habits
- Past traumas
- Anxiety triggers
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) manages the thoughts, feelings, and actions of those with masturbation addiction, and can be very effective for treating compulsions.
A common thought is, “I am an undesirable sexual partner.” The formidable related thought may then be, “Because people do not find me alluring, I must sexually satisfy myself for pleasure. It’s all I deserve.”
The behaviour then follows. By changing how one sees oneself and by participating in various behavioural experiments, the compulsion may ultimately change.
Medication
There is no specific medication for masturbation addiction, however, other conditions that need medication like depressive disorder, substance use, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder may develop with an excessive masturbation habit. In such cases, patients must explore these factors with a physician and take the necessary medicine.
Takeaways
Some people may feel ashamed or guilty when talking about masturbation. But it is important to understand that masturbation is a normal and healthy part of life and not something to feel regretful about.
Despite the many myths, masturbation does not lead to blindness or cause hair loss.
Masturbation only becomes a problem if you are not able to control the habit and it begins to intrude with daily life and relationships with friends, family, and romantic partners.
FAQ on What is Masturbation Addiction
1] Why do I masturbate too much?
Ans. Below are some possible causes of feeling the necessity to excessively masturbate:
- Underlying mental health issues that you manage by using masturbation to relax or lift your mood
- A tendency toward addiction because of your neurobiology – one study revealed that individuals with compulsive sexual behaviour showed stronger connections between specific brain structures similar to those affected in drug reward circuits.
- Excessive dopamine release that gives you a feel-good kind of pleasure.
2] What happens if a man releases sperm daily?
Ans. There is no proof that how frequently a male releases sperm can negatively affect health. There may be some health benefits to sex, though how repeatedly a male ejaculates will be different for each person.
3] Can masturbation cause headaches?
Ans. From research, it was found that in some individuals, sexual activity like masturbation could cause headaches or worsen them in some cases.
4] How to stop the urge to masturbate?
Ans. The first step to avoiding masturbation is to quit pornography. You should also try to add physical activity to your daily routine. If required, you can also attend a support group session or visit a therapist.
5] Can masturbation cause memory loss?
Ans. In general, there is no proof justifying if masturbation causes memory loss. Excessive masturbation can lead to brain fog, confusion, and stress.
6] Does masturbation cause hair fall?
There is no scientific proof that masturbating leads to hair loss. This myth arises from the idea that semen has high levels of protein, and so with each ejaculation, the body loses protein that it could use for hair growth.
