Gaydar*
 

Am I a Sex Addict, or Am I a High-T?


I’ve been a specialist in the field of sexual addiction and compulsivity for almost 20 years. Clients will ask me if they are a sex addict by the specifics of what they’re thinking, doing, and/or wanting to do make them a potential sex addict. For example, does wanting sex every day, or twice a night make them an addict?

The surprising truth is that sexual addiction isn’t about sex at all. Sexual compulsives behave sexually, but the underlying reason for their behavior has to do with their “acting out” something else inside such as sexual trauma or other forms of childhood abuse or neglect. To determine whether they’re truly sex addicts and sexually acting out (SAO), many factors need to be considered.

Patrick Carnes coined the term sexual addiction in 1983. His work focuses on how “addictive sexuality feels shameful, is exploitive, compromises values, draws on fear for excitement, reenacts childhood abuses, disconnects one from oneself, creates a world of unreality, is self-destructive and dangerous, uses conquest and power, serves to medicate and kill pain, is dishonest, becomes routine, requires a double life, is grim and joyless and demands perfection”.

I ask heterosexual men and women alike to take the sexual addiction screening tests that can be found in Patrick Carne’s books, Out of the Shadows and Don’t Call It Love. For gay men, I suggest taking the test in my own book 10 Smart Things Gay Men Can Do To Improve Their Lives and for women, I recommend taking the test in Charlotte Kasl’s book Women, Sex and Addiction; A Search for Love and Power. While these tests are anecdotal and not research-based, they open a dialogue about one’s sexual behavior. If they point to possible addiction, then we start to examine what we refer to as one’s “sexually acting out” (SAO) behaviors.

To confirm or rule out sexual addiction, the following ten signs should be explored:

1. A pattern of out-of-control sexual behavior: Reflecting on one’s past can illuminate if this patterns exists. Usually someone with a sexual addiction doesn’t recognize it until his/her 30s or 40s, when patterns have been firmly established.

2. Severe consequences as a result of out-of-control sexual behavior: If you’re single and don’t have frequent contact with family and friends, then repercussions of your out-of-control sexual behavior may not occur as easily. If you hide your sexual behavior from your partner and others you’re close to, this too can result in your remaining unaware of your addiction. However, anyone with sexual addiction frequently incurs legal, medical, and relational consequences. These may include arrests at public restrooms, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), overindulging to the point of physical injury (ie: sores on one’s genitals), and a partner threatening to leave.

3. Persistent pursuit of self-destructive or high-risk sexual behavior: Do you frequently: have sex without using a condom; give oral sex and swallow; cruise public areas for sex, knowing you can be arrested; secretly log onto the Internet at work or at home and changing the screen as soon as someone approaches; or have affairs outside of your partnered relationship?

4. On-going desire or efforts to limit this behavior: You should be able to easily determine how much sex you want to engage in, and how often. Of course at times, you’ll let desire to overcome you and be spontaneous. But if allowing your desires to overcome you becomes the norm—where your desires are making the decisions, and not you—you might want to consider that you may have a problem.

5. Inability to stop, despite the consequences: If you never try to stop, you won’t know if an inability exists. I tell clients that after a negative consequence, most people who don’t have a problem, sexual or otherwise, will either greatly reduce the “offending” behavior or give it up completely. Those who continue in the face of unpleasant results usually have a problem.

6. Sexual obsession and fantasy are your chief strategies for coping : Obsession doesn’t mean thinking about sex every minute of the day—but of course, it can. It can take on the following forms: planning time for acting out sexually; ensuring that you'll have enough money to spend on SAO; lying and covering up your escapades; recovering from the effects of SAO; worrying about an STD or if you’ve passed it onto a partner; or not using up your libido so there’s none left for your partner.

7. Increasing your quantity—or variety—of sexual experience because the current level no longer satisfies you : Your participation in SAO is enhanced by naturally-produced internal drugs like as PEA, adrenaline, and endorphins. Tolerance to these drugs begins to increase, so that over time, you need to engage in more dangerous behaviors or take higher risks to get the same sexual high.

8. Severe mood changes centering around sexual activity: Sex should heighten your self esteem and intimacy with others. The course of sexual addiction usually ends in feelings of shame, depression, and despair over one’s SAO behavior. Beforehand, looking forward to sexual behavior usually boosts people’s mood. But afterward, the addict often reports a lack of sleep and therefore, being on edge and easily irritated. If you feel shame after sex, that could indicate there’s something wrong.

9. Inordinate time spent in looking for sexual experiences, engaging in them, or recovering from them : Sex addicts prefer the chase over the actual behavior; and so spend increasing amounts of time in Internet chat rooms while surfing for porn sites. They’ll waste hours, day or night in bathhouses, at bars and rest areas in search of numerous hook-ups. The sex they experience is often a disappointing letdown.

10. Reducing or neglecting other social, occupational, or recreational activities: The true sex addict prefers sexual highs and the thrill of the chase over simply being with others, getting work done at his/her job and/or making time for fun and recreation. None of us can totally balance life perfectly. But if you’re neglecting important areas of your life to spend time thinking about, planning for, looking for, and making time for SAO, that should cause you some concern.

Have you ruled out being a sex addict but still feel troubled by your sexual behavior? You may simply be: a high-T with a strong sex drive; in Stage 5 of coming out of the closet; or in romantic love—the first stage of a relationship; acting out childhood sexual abuse, or other forms of abuse or neglect that cause other forms of sexual discomfort.

Lastly, are you using sexual behavior to manage some affective disorder such as depression, anxiety, manic-depression, or ADHD? The solution is to read much of the self-help literature that’s available online and in bookstores and seek therapy with someone with professional experience in dealing with SAO.

©2009 by Joe Kort

Related: Issues, Books

Psychotherapist Joe Kort, MA, MSW, has been in practice since 1985. He specializes in Gay Affirmative Psychotherapy as well as IMAGO Relationship Therapy, which is a specific program involving communication exercises designed for couples to enhance their relationship and for singles to learn relationship skills. He also specializes in sexual addiction, childhood sexual, physical and emotional abuse, depression and anxiety. He offers workshops for couples and singles. He runs a gay men's group therapy and a men's sexuality group therapy for straight, bi and gay men who are struggling with specific sexual issues. His therapy services are for gays and lesbians as well as heterosexuals. His articles and columns have appeared in The Detroit Free Press, Between the Lines Newspaper for Gays and Lesbians, The Detroit News, The Oakland Press, The Royal Oak Mirror, and other publications. Besides providing therapy for individuals and couples, he conducts a number of groups and workshops for gay men. Now an adjunct professor teaching Gay and Lesbian Studies at Wayne State University's School of Social Work, he is doing more writing and workshops on a national level. He is the author of 10 Smart Things Gay Men can do to Improve Their Lives and 10 Smart Things Gay Men Can Do to Find Real Love. www.joekort.com or E-Mail

* Gaydar (gay'.dahr, n.): (1) The ability that lets gays and lesbians identify one other. (2) This column--where non-gay readers can improve their gaydar, learning more about gay men's psychology and social lives. Also, (3) a regular feature where gay readers can discover the many questions and hassles their straight counterparts--and themselves--must face!



Contact Us | Disclaimer | Privacy Statement
Menstuff® Directory
Menstuff® is a registered trademark of Gordon Clay
©1996-2023, Gordon Clay