Category: Hyper-Sexuality

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What Is Hypersexuality Disorder?

Hypersexuality Disorder, Compulsive Sexual Behavior, and Sex Addiction

By Geralyn Dexter, LMHC

Hypersexuality is defined by an intense urge or desire to engage in various kinds of sexual activity. The terms “sex addiction” and “compulsive sexual behavior” are often used interchangeably with hypersexuality disorder. While sexual desire and activity are part of human nature, it can become problematic when the behavior results in adverse consequences or is used as an escape mechanism.

Read on to learn about symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and coping with hypersexuality disorder.

Hypersexuality Disorder

Research estimates that between 3%-6% of the population deals with hypersexuality, compulsive sexual behavior, or sex addiction. This may include activities such as:1

  • Excessive masturbation
  • Consensual sexual activity with multiple partners 
  • Pornography use
  • Phone or cyber sex
  • Frequenting strip clubs

Sexual thoughts, urges, or behaviors can have negative consequences when a person is preoccupied with them, and they begin to take up more space in their minds and lives.

Fantasies and urges may feel intrusive, intense, and challenging to change or manage. These compulsions or actions can significantly affect a person’s quality of life and create problems at home, work, school, and relationships.< Additionally, a person with hypersexuality disorder may experience emotional distress, find themselves in financial or legal trouble, or need evaluation or treatment for sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

Symptoms

Compulsive sexual behavior can present differently, as there are different types of sexual behaviors.

Symptoms of hypersexuality disorder or sex addiction may include:

  • Repetitive thoughts, urges, or behaviors that feel unmanageable
  • Strong emotions such as depression, anxiety, shame, guilt, remorse related to behavior
  • Unsuccessful attempts to change, control, or reduce fantasies or behaviors
  • Using sexual behavior as a coping mechanism
  • Continuing to participate in behaviors that have caused significant repercussions
  • Engaging in risky behavior
  • Being untruthful about or trying to hide behavior
  • Trouble establishing or maintaining healthy relationships

Hypersexuality disorder is not included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), the American Psychiatric Association’s handbook for diagnosing mental health conditions. Because of this, mental health professionals go back and forth on how to classify compulsive sexual behavior.

Currently, hypersexuality disorder is characterized similarly to impulse control disorders and behavioral addictions.

Compulsive sexual behavior disorder (CSBD) is classified under the International Classification of Disease, 11th revision (ICD-11), as an impulse control disorder.2 It defines CSBD as a persistent pattern of failure to control intense, repetitive sexual impulses or urges resulting in repetitive sexual behavior. Symptoms include:

  • Repetitive sexual activities become a central focus of the person’s life, to the point of neglecting health and personal care or other interests, activities, and responsibilities.
  • Numerous unsuccessful efforts to significantly reduce repetitive sexual behavior
  • Continued repetitive sexual behavior despite adverse consequences or deriving little or no satisfaction from it
  • A person enters a pattern of failure to control intense sexual impulses or urges, resulting in repetitive sexual behavior that manifests over an extended period (e.g., six months or more). This causes marked distress or significant impairment in personal, family, social, educational, occupational, or other important areas of functioning. It’s important to note that distress that is entirely related to moral judgments and disapproval about sexual impulses, urges, or behaviors is insufficient to meet this requirement.

Causes

More research is needed on the cause of hypersexuality. However, a review of the literature on hypersexual behavior has identified several factors that may lead to hypersexual behavior, including:

Individuals with easy access to sexual content or material may have a higher risk of developing compulsive sexual behavior. Additionally, mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, or addiction may also be risk factors.3

Risk of Sexually Transmitted Infections

Excessive and unsafe sexual behavior puts a person at greater risk of contracting STIs. Therefore, those with hypersexual behavior should discuss screening for STIs with their healthcare provider and possibly starting pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV infection.

Diagnosis

Though hypersexuality disorder is not included in the DSM-5 as a formal diagnosis, clinicians assess patients similarly to how they would for a mental health condition. They may also use the criteria for compulsive sexual behavior disorder in the ICD-11.

Consultation with a medical healthcare provider may be recommended to rule out other conditions before conducting a mental health examination. A healthcare provider will explore a patient’s thought content and behavior related to sex, especially those that feel difficult to control.

To get a complete picture of a patient’s health and how they are impacted by compulsive sexual behavior, a healthcare provider may ask about relationships, substance use, and financial or legal consequences.

Additionally, your provider may ask about significant or stressful life events, feelings of guilt, shame, or remorse, low self-esteem, or use a screening tool to gauge symptoms.4

Treatment

Treatment for compulsive sexual behavior can vary based on the underlying issues. For example, one study revealed that 72% of patients with hypersexual behavior were diagnosed with a mood disorder, 38% had an anxiety disorder, and 40% had substance use issues.5

If a mood disorder, anxiety disorder, or substance use disorder is the cause, a healthcare provider may recommend the following medications:

  • Mood stabilizers: For patients with mood disorders such as bipolar disorder. Hypersexual behavior may occur particularly during a manic episode.
  • Antidepressants: Can reduce urges in individuals with anxiety and depression
  • Naltrexone: Used to manage impulses with alcohol and opioids (sometimes coupled with antidepressants)

Individual, family, or group therapy can occur in inpatient or outpatient settings based on a patient’s needs.

Psychodynamic therapy may help patients identify triggers and examine feelings of guilt, shame, and self-esteem that may contribute to hypersexuality.

In cognitive behavioral therapy, patients learn to recognize unhealthy beliefs about themselves and their sexual behavior, develop tools to manage complex thoughts and emotions, and sustain healthy behaviors. A therapist may introduce techniques from acceptance and commitment therapy to support patients with practicing mindfulness.

Seeking support through a self-help group is another option that a mental health professional may suggest in conjunction with therapy. Based on the 12-step theory, groups like Sex Addicts Anonymous can help people with compulsive sexual behavior find a sense of community in recovery.

When to Call Your Doctor

It may be time to contact your healthcare provider if you:

  • Are worried or distressed about sexual fantasies, urges, or behaviors
  • Have difficulty changing or controlling your actions
  • Experience negative consequences in other areas of your life such as relationships, work, or your health
  • Attempt to hide your behavior
  • Believe your urges or desires may lead you to cause harm to yourself or others

If you are experiencing suicidal thoughts, you can call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or text ‘HOME’ to 741-741 to reach a crisis counselor at the Crisis Text Line.

Coping

Learning to cope with hypersexuality and its impact on your life is essential to recovery. Strategies that may be useful include:

  • Seeking treatment and being consistent with treatment by keeping appointments and communicating concerns and problems with a therapist.
  • Connect with an established support system or join a support group.
  • Engage in activities that promote relaxation, mindfulness, and stress management.
  • Be compassionate with yourself.
  • Have honest conversations with your partner or family members.
  • Explore and set boundaries in your relationships.

Summary

Hypersexuality disorder is characterized by an intense desire to engage in sexual activity. This kind of compulsive sexual behavior can negatively affect your relationships. Treatment and coping options are available to help you live with or recover from hypersexuality disorder.

A Word From Verywell

Feelings of guilt and shame are often associated with compulsive sexual behavior. If you struggle to control sexual fantasies, urges, and behaviors, you are not alone. Seeking help from a mental health professional, finding support and treatment, and being compassionate with yourself can aid you in recovery.

Complete Article ↪HERE↩!

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Can the Gay Community Survive Without Hyper-Sexuality?

by Devin Randall

Sex. It’s driven gay society for years. Through sexually charged clubs, bathhouses, movies and more. But as we enter a new decade, will queer men be able to live without the gay hyper-sexuality that made our society for so long?

The Unhealthiness of Gay Hyper-Sexuality

Let’s face it, gay hyper-sexuality has been in our culture for centuries. From the times of ancient Greece, to the truck stops and bathhouses of the 1900s, and to the sex-fused dating apps, gay movies, and gay video games of the present, hyper-sexuality has kept gay society going.

Of course, that’s not always good. Gay men have put themselves in unhealthy situations because of our unhealthy attachment to risky sex. For instance, a recent UK study found that 24% of gay UK men had casual sex during lockdown.

There’s also the idea that not all gay men are the same. Not every gay man wants to hang out at a club or have anonymous sex at men’s only hotels. As time goes by, that section of gay society is growing larger and stronger.

Going Mainstream & Losing Spaces

As homosexuality and LGBTQ people become more accepted by the mainstream populace, we are becoming expected to follow mainstream rules. That means gay apps having to stick to the family-friendly rules of the app store, movies having to lower the sexuality factor if they want to include LGBTQ representation while still marketing to conservative box offices, and more. 

On the app front, this has been happening for a few years now. Two years ago, Tumblr, which used to be a great space for gay bloggers and adult content viewers, announced that it would ban all adult content. Doing so was in response to the Apple app store taking Tumblr’s app off its service for breaking policy. The same happened to other apps in the gay digital sphere.

On top of this, the current coronavirus pandemic has put many gay spaces in dangerous situations. The historic Royal Vauxhall Tavern, which is a hotspot for England’s gay community and once housed Freddie Mercury and Princess Diana as patrons, has announced possibly facing closure and eviction. The venue has resorted to crowdfunding in order to fight off bankruptcy. This is just one establishment among many with similar circumstances.

Unfortunately, that has all led to the erasure of some gay spaces. With gay men finding each other through apps or other spaces, gay bathhouses and clubs are closing down and disappearing. Or, they are opening up to straight/cis audiences and changing the very natures of the spaces altogether. How many of us have entered a “gay bar” and seen bachelorette parties or heard straight DJs openly hitting on women?

Love, Victor & Wholesome LGBTQ Content

But again, going mainstream can be nice. Being gay isn’t just about the sex. Our lives amount to more than hooking up in alleyways. Wholesome LGBTQ content is on the rise, showing that being LGBTQ means a lot of things. Just think about Hulu’s recently released Love, Victor, which spotlights a wholesome portrayal of LGBTQ existence. It’s about a teen who is just discovering his sexuality and what he wants in love and life. We can all be like Victor. We can be more than just clubs.

Sexuality & LGBTQ Spaces Must Thrive

But, of course, we deserve to still have those spaces preserved and present in our lives. LGBTQ people, and gay/bi men specifically, don’t need the hyper-sexuality as much nowadays. But that doesn’t mean we don’t need it at all. As long as there are gay/bi men, there will be little hole-in-the-wall bars, bathhouses and clubs providing spaces for sexual activity. As long as there are horny men, there will be sexual games and movies to entertain us. Sexuality, hyper or not, will thrive for years and decades to come.

That said, we also have to accept that hyper-sexual aspects of gay society will be on the decline in the future. As we get more accepted by the general populace, we’ll be less able to openly participate in hyper-sexual spaces. Gay society is changing. Part of that is sad, but part of that is great too. And in the end, all of it is a natural part of life.

Complete Article ↪HERE↩!