He discovered porn at 11 and got addicted. He found help in a surprising place.
Ryan didn’t open his phone with the intention of finding porn. But when the 11-year-old came across it on his social media feed, he was intrigued. As he watched, he experienced a rush of curiosity and excitement.
Soon, his brain was hooked on that dopamine rush. It became a daily routine.
He told himself he could stop if he wanted to, but the habit grew from something he did in the confines of his bedroom to an all-consuming urge. His parents installed internet blockers, but he got around them. By the time sixth grade started, he was ducking out of class up to three times a day to watch porn and masturbate in the bathroom.
“Porn is just an emotional crutch to avoid all of the feelings that I didn’t even realize I was having,” says Ryan, now 25, who, like others USA TODAY spoke to for this story, requested that his last name be withheld because of the sensitive nature of the topic.
Many Gen Z men, who grew up with smartphones and unrestricted internet access, say they happened upon porn early and frequently. Some now describe themselves as addicted and are turning to a fast-growing community of men online who are trying to help each other break these habits. Research shows that men struggle with compulsive porn consumption more than…
I remember being in middle school when a friend and I stumbled and found my dad’s Hustler in the back of his trunk. We looked at it and I didn’t see porn till I was in high school. I had to go to Texaco and buy a few magazines because I didn’t have any. Talk about nerve wrecking due to the cashier being our neighbor’s daughter.
Porn can be just as addictive as Heroin.
Not physically addictive per se, but physiologically and psychologically addictive, and the guy hit the nail right on the head when he said it’s not an act of real intimacy.
It actually cheapens sex to be something no more than than a raunchy video act that has no love or emotion between the people engaged in it, and one pornographic woman actor even said ‘I don’t kiss in the videos, because kissing is too personal’.
Wow!! Kissing is too personal, but sex is not?! Wow!!
The pornography industry makes more money every year than the NFL.
I really wish I could have found something like this a few years ago. That might have saved me a lot of trouble.
I wonder what is more harmful online, pornography or gambling.
Again, this is where the parenting/mentoring process in this country is falling short and failing minors in understanding this topic.