This is an interesting article, but I'm not entirely convinced. I guess I'd have to experience this for myself, but the cynic in me has not dismissed the possibility that the author is secretly an anti-porn advocate searching for data to justify an existing bias. As for the men quoted in the article, I think I would need to first know their initial attitudes towards porn/mastrubation to begin with (Did they feel guilt and shame?), and how much time they spent doing it before I drew any serious conclusions. Oh well, decide for yourself. BTW, the book mentioned in the article, The Brain That Changes Itself, is on my reading list. I like that kind of stuff. - DG

Was the Cowardly Lion Just Masturbating Too Much?

Has anyone reading this noticed a correlation between giving up porn and reduced social anxiety?

Due to a search engine coincidence, I have been listening to the agonies and ecstasies of recovering porn addicts for several years. Over and over, a common pattern appears: As users manage to abstain from porn and cut way back on masturbation, their desire to connect with others surges. So does their confidence, their ability to look others in the eye, their sense of humor, their perception of their "manliness," their concentration, their optimism, their judgment, their attractiveness to potential mates, and so forth. Even those formerly suffering from severe social anxiety are more often than not emboldened to explore new avenues for social contact: smiling and joking with work colleagues, online dating, meditation groups, nightspots, and so forth. In some cases it takes months, but often the shift is so rapid that it catches them by surprise. (I'm not implying that social anxiety is solely due to porn use, or that extroversion is a sign of its absence. I'm merely wondering whether, for some, more careful management of sexual desire might be surprisingly beneficial.)

In Addiction as an Attachment Disorder, Philip J. Flores makes the point that one can't attach in a normal, or even therapeutic, relationship while one is attached to an addiction. By the same token, the best support for avoiding relapse is solid relationships with others—and the ability to form them at will.

Read the rest on Psychology Today.