Effects of Pornography on Sexual Satisfaction in Marriage

Effects Of Pornography

Does pornography serve as an aid that increases marital sexual satisfaction?

The research says, “Absolutely Not”!

The effects of pornography actually produce the opposite reality of what husbands and wives are looking for.

In fact, one of the startling effects of pornography that I mentioned in my last post was that users of pornography report less frequent and less satisfying sex than those who do not view pornographic material.

Why?

Well, for starters, one of the negative effects of pornography is that it presents an unrealistic picture of sex.

And it tends to dehumanize people, too. How?

One of the harmful effects of pornography is that it reduces people to mere objects that are to be used and consumed instead of human beings who deserve a loving, caring relationship.

When a spouse feels more like an object than a person it reduces his or her willingness to engage in marital sex. Which leads to less sex as being one of the most common side effects of pornography, as already mentioned.

Other effects of pornography include husbands and wives who feel frustrated, inadequate, worthless and lonely. And when they are resistant to pornography and their spouse’s desire to introduce behaviors and activities that they have seen in the pornographic material that they have consumed, then the spouse tends to withdraw and delve even more deeply into the pornographic lifestyle.

This creates one of the more chronic effects of pornography upon the marriage relationship: withdrawal of the spouses from each other, and a lack of effort to repair and restore the relationship. And as they continue to drift, they become increasingly more distant and lonely.

While the user of pornography desires to have more frequent and more satisfying sex, what the effects of pornography actually create for him or her is less frequent and less satisfying sex.

And to make it even worse, added to the already damaging effects of pornography, is that the user is more likely to have frequent bouts of severe depression when compared to those who don’t use pornography. This only fuels the downward cycle.

So, if this is an area of your life where you are struggling, then please know that there is absolutely no down side to quitting and freeing yourself from the negative and depressing effects of pornography .

To put it another way, here are the benefits to kicking the porn habit:

• You will be happier (less depression)
• You will create a healthier, safer environment for your children
• You will have more sex
• And the sex you will have will be much, much more satisfying

However, because the effects of pornography are so strong, quitting is easier said than done.

While the psychological community is divided as to whether the use of pornography actually qualifies as an addiction, everyone agrees that the user’s strong dependency upon this material is a difficult thing to break.  So, don’t try to do this alone.  Get help!  Here are a few suggestions to break free of the effects of pornography:

1. Talk to someone you trust about the effects of pornography on your life. Admitting that you have a problem is the first step toward recovery.  Talk to a trusted friend, counselor, or clergy – someone who will keep things confidential.
2. Ask for help.  Ask someone to hold you accountable for this problem.  Give them permission to regularly ask the “tough questions”, and then vow to answer honestly. Be committed to ridding your life of the suffocating effects of pornography.
3. Join a group.  Find a support group for sexual addictions and attend regularly.  You will find this to be a great aid to your recovery.

But here’s something that I can’t stress strongly enough when you find yourself waging battle against the effects of pornography: Seek competent counseling.

Realize that there are counselors and psychologists who specialize in this area — so consider seeking help from one of them.  They can be of tremendous help to you as you deal with and recover from the effects of pornography.

Something else you can do is install filters on your computer to help prevent viewing pornographic material online.  Some programs actually alert an online accountability partner who will send an email or give you a call when your computer goes to a questionable site.

Most of all, though, don’t give up.

Although it will be difficult, others have kicked this habit and overcome the effects of porn. If they did it then so can you!

You, your spouse, and your marriage deserve to be free from the harmful and dangerous effects of pornography.

You deserve to enjoy the benefits of a pornography-free life! So find the help you need today and say “goodbye” once-and-for-all to the effects of pornography.