Pornography and Depression: What’s The Link?

Types of Depression

• Persistent depressive disorder (also called dysthymia): is a depressed mood that lasts for at least two years. A person diagnosed with persistent depressive disorder may have episodes of major Depression along with periods of less severe symptoms, but symptoms must last for two years to be considered a persistent depressive disorder.
• Psychotic Depression: occurs when a person has severe depression plus some form of psychosis, such as having disturbing false fixed beliefs (delusions) or hearing or seeing upsetting things that others cannot hear or see (hallucinations). The psychotic symptoms typically have a depressive “theme,” such as delusions of guilt, poverty, or illness.
• Bipolar disorder: is different from Depression, but it is included in this list because someone with bipolar disorder experiences episodes of extremely low moods that meet the criteria for major Depression (called “Bipolar Depression”). But a person with bipolar disorder also experiences extreme high – euphoric or irritable – moods called “mania” or a less severe form called “hypomania.”
• Postpartum Depression: is much more serious than the “baby blues” (relatively mild depressive and anxiety symptoms that typically clear within two weeks after delivery) that many women experience after giving birth. Women with postpartum Depression experience full-blown major Depression during pregnancy or after delivery (postpartum depression). The feelings of extreme sadness, anxiety, and exhaustion that accompany postpartum depression may make it difficult for these new mothers to complete daily care activities for themselves and/or their babies.
• Seasonal affective disorder: is characterized by the onset of Depression during the winter months, when there is less natural sunlight. This Depression generally lifts during spring and summer. Winter Depression, typically accompanied by social withdrawal, increased sleep, and weight gain, predictably returns every year in seasonal affective disorder.
• SAD Seasonal Depression (Depressed SAD): A form of depression known as seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is triggered by the changing of the seasons; it starts and ends about at the same periods each year. If you have SAD like the majority of people do, your symptoms begin in the fall and last through the winter, draining your energy and making you cranky. Typically, these symptoms go away in the spring and summer. SAD less frequently results in depression in the spring or early summer and clears up in the fall or winter. SAD treatment options include medications, psychotherapy, and light therapy (phototherapy).

Depression & Anxiety Statistics

It’s critical to understand the distinction between anxiety and depression. Anxiety, in its most basic form, is an excessive feeling of worry, whereas depression, in its most basic form, is an excessive feeling of worthlessness and hopelessness. It is conceivable for someone to experience depression and anxiety simultaneously.

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Does Porn Cause Depression?

However, can someone who is miserable find solace in porn? Yes and no, claims Gabrielle Usatynski, LPC, of Power Couples Education

One of the major chemical imbalances associated with depression, according to her, is low serotonin levels. She continues by stating that orgasm might cause serotonin to be released “making you feel calm and at ease. An increase in dopamine, another important neurotransmitter that is deficient in depression, is likewise brought on by orgasm.”

Usatynski said that once someone becomes addicted to porn, they also grow tolerant of it, just like they do with drugs, which causes their enjoyment from using it to decline over time. “In other words, you require increasing amounts of stimulus and dopamine to achieve that delightful effect. Because of this, binge-watching porn can eventually make your depression worse.”

Porn For Depression: When Is Too Far Too Much?

Here are Capparucci’s defining actions that will help a person recognize when porn has negatively impacted their lives:

• They rather isolate themselves and watch porn instead of socializing.
• They become dissatisfied with their partner’s appearance.
• They are preoccupied with sexual thoughts throughout the day, and they cannot wait to see what new visuals have been updated on their favorite porn site.
• They see sex as nothing more than a physical activity that involves no emotional intimacy.
• They take more risks and may start searching for porn at work or when their partner may be able to catch them.
• They find themselves objectifying people more.
• They start desiring to seek out different sexual activities or may escalate to acting out what they see in porn with people.

Depression And Porn: Getting Help

• Tracking your daily habits (or Mental Health Similarity Scores in the Behaviour app) and observing the change over time will allow you to determine whether the efforts you are taking to lessen your porn addiction are indeed having the desired effect.

What Does Treatment Look Like?

A period of inpatient or residential treatment during which the patient resides at the treatment facility may be beneficial for someone with severe symptoms of porn addiction. With this choice, individuals can isolate themselves from external pressures and concentrate solely on their rehabilitation. These kinds of programs typically last between 28 to 90 days, while there are some longer treatments available.

In addition, Choudhary notes that treatment for addiction to pornography, depression, or any other mental disorder will always be personalized, i.e., client-centered and based on the client’s evidence. The choices are as follows:

• Individual treatment: is advised since it can be highly beneficial to become aware of triggers and discover healthy ways to manage them. Other treatment modalities, such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), are frequently accessible.
• Group therapy: Clients can connect with others going through similar experiences and develop coping skills that will help them deal with the daily struggles of porn addiction. These groups are frequently easily accessible, however, joining one may be harder for the clients if they suffer from severe depression or social anxiety.
• Combining medication with therapy: Medication may be used in conjunction with psychotherapy and behavioral interventions if there is an underlying mental health disease, such as depression or an anxiety disorder.

We Level Up Dual Diagnosis Treatment

Creating a treatment plan that addresses the physical aspects of withdrawal, the psychological connection with drug use, and managing underlying mental health disorders is part of setting clients up for success.  A thorough mental health analysis identifies possibilities for treatment.  Meeting with mental health counselors and medical care providers means access to behavioral therapy and medication treatment. At our dual diagnosis treatment center, We Level Up can implement the highest quality of care. 

We recognize the fragile complexities of how mental and substance abuse disorders can influence others and sometimes result in a vicious cycle of addiction or in an alcohol depression cycle.  That’s why we offer specialized treatment in dual-diagnosis cases to provide the most excellent chance of true healing and long-lasting recovery. There is no set alcohol depression recovery time, each person has their own time.

It can be challenging to accept that you may be living with a mental illness, but once it is properly diagnosed and treated, treating the presenting case of substance abuse can be magnitudes easier. Only a properly trained medical professional can diagnose these underlying conditions.  If you believe you are suffering from a disorder alongside addiction, we urge you to seek a qualified treatment center to begin your journey to recovery. Call We Level Up today.