Sex Addiction Therapy
Do You Struggle To Control Your Sexual Impulses Or Behaviors?
Are you hiding a love or sex addiction that you can no longer manage alone? Do you often put yourself in compromising positions at work or in your relationships due to excessive or uncontrollable porn use? Are you engaging in extramarital affairs or hopping from one relationship to the next, hoping to find satisfaction or validation that ultimately never lasts?
Perhaps you are a successful professional, a high-profile member of the community, or someone in a position of trust, and you worry that eventually your behaviors could cost you everything. Or maybe a spouse or employer has already discovered your situation, and you are looking for a way to recover a sense of dignity, normalcy, and control in your life.
On the outside, it probably seems like you have everything put together well, but on the inside, it may feel like you are Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. It’s as if you are living a double life: in one reality, you are a beloved little league coach, a community leader, or the CEO of a company; in the other, you struggle with impulsivity and sexually problematic behavior that runs directly contrary to all your values. And though you want to stop, the narcotic-like attraction only adds to the cycle of addiction.
However, your actions are not who you are. At Insideout Living, we will show you that you are capable of being loved as you are—warts and all. In time, you can learn to manage the highs and lows of life and feel safe and accepted in relationships without turning to unhealthy coping mechanisms.
Sex Addiction Is A Rapidly Growing Health Concern
The goal or purpose of every addiction is to ease emotional overwhelm. So sex addiction is not an issue of being sinful or bad, it’s a desperate response to feeling empty, unloved, or broken. Sometimes, those insecurities are born out of sexual, emotional, or physical trauma as a child. As an adult, sex easily becomes a vehicle for validation and affirming that lack of self-worth.
That’s just one reason that sex addiction in all of its forms—chronic infidelity, online porn use, fantasy and obsession—is the fastest growing addiction of this century. In fact, in one survey, 7 percent of women and 10.3 percent of men expressed distress due to a pronounced difficulty controlling sexual compulsions.*
Another reason for those numbers is accessibility: given the internet, you can do or initiate anything with the swipe of a finger or the press of a button. Sexual addictions are also easily concealed because there are no telltale signs of dilated eyes or slurred speech, so you can hide it in plain sight. And sometimes, people simply confuse intensity with intimacy, causing them to seek more reward, more pleasure, until it becomes a compulsive behavior.
Unfortunately, overcoming sex addiction can be harder than managing a drug addiction because, unlike cocaine, alcohol, or other addictive substances, sex is an integral part of who we are as human beings. It’s an essential part of life, and breaking that cycle and figuring out what is healthy behavior can be difficult on your own.
Look, no one can simply say: “I’m not going to be a sexual creature anymore.” That’s not how we are built!
At Insideout Living, we can help you heal old emotional wounds and teach you how to accept and love yourself so you can have a healthy relationship with sex.
Sex Addiction Therapy Puts You In A Place Of Control
Usually, when people come in for therapy, they are most concerned with the addictive behavior itself. But addiction is usually just the tip of the iceberg. Therapy gives clients a chance to drill down through that iceberg and understand the underlying issues at the heart of their sexual compulsions. More often than not, those drivers include childhood abuse, sexual trauma, lack of self-worth, and a fear of abandonment. But therapy can teach you how to reconcile the past, regulate the way you feel, and manage your impulses so that you no longer need a “flawed solution” for validating yourself.
We’ll begin our time together with a thorough assessment in order to tailor our therapeutic strategies to your situation. It allows us to look at how your behaviors play out in the real world, what happened in your life to create those patterns, and how they show up in terms of money, work, and relationships. We’ll also explore your core values and beliefs so that we can begin integrating them into how you want to live your life.
At Insideout Living, we utilize a very relational, psychoeducational, and strength-based model for healing and rebuilding yourself. To help you build a strong foundation for recovery, we provide a task-centered approach to therapy that has a clear beginning, middle, and end. We believe that everyone has the ability to change, grow, and be resilient despite how they think of themselves. But that takes a little exploration and restructuring, which is where Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) come into play.
Using CBT and DBT, we can carefully dig beneath and consciously alter any negative belief patterns that are driving harmful behaviors. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is another powerful tool for processing any unresolved trauma that may be at the heart of your quandary.
We also provide a ton of psychoeducation to demystify the nature of sexual addictions, as well as Somatic Therapy for a body-centric approach to reconciling any physical manifestations of emotional pain, especially trauma. And because people are multidimensional, we use Experiential Therapy for a more comprehensive, interactive experience. That may include artistic expression, music, movement, dance, or role-playing—anything to externally facilitate deeper healing.
Right now, it likely seems as though you are trapped living two different lives with so many moving parts involved that change is impossible. But there are only a few unhealthy patterns you need to work on, and by doing so, you will slowly begin to recognize other areas in your life that are improving as well.
Repairing relationships and trust, feeling less stress and more joy, and living with integrity is completely possible with a little help. In time, you can cultivate a healthy relationship with yourself and be vulnerable in ways that promote greater empathy, self-acceptance, and a regulated life that is far less triggering.
Perhaps you are considering sex addiction therapy but still have concerns...
Can sex addiction counseling help the family or spouse of the addict?
Sexual addictions often have a deeper emotional impact than drug and alcohol dependency because of the strong relational link involved. Partners, spouses, children, and relationships in general can all suffer. So sex addiction therapy often requires a wraparound approach that encompasses all the loved ones who have been hurt. That’s why we also have specialists dedicated to counseling couples, families, and partners of sex addicts. Using our structured S.T.E.P. program, we can give each person a voice, restore the integrity of your relationship, and help you decide how to move forward.
Does group therapy for sex addiction work?
There is so much more potential for support and growth in group therapy compared to individual sessions. The sense of community and the chance to help others who are suffering just like you make it clear that you are not alone—and that you are not a monster! This is not about being good or bad; it’s about healing yourself. And the best way to heal relational wounds is through relationships, which is why group therapy for sex addiction is so effective and highly recommended.
Do you have any sex addiction treatment services that are more individualized?
The most unique aspect of Insideout Living’s services is our task-centered, intensive coaching outpatient program. Whether you are looking to work on yourself more, transition out of an in-patient program, or simply change your behavioral patterns, our intensive coaching program can support you wherever you are in the recovery process.
We offer 24-hour/five-week intensive coaching programs as well as 40-hour/seven-week sessions, depending on your preference. Whatever you are going through—love addiction, chemical dependency, relationship problems, co-dependency, or trauma related to any of these—our intensive coaching programs can offer you quick and effective support.
Let Us Help You Heal And Be Whole
If you would like to gain agency over compulsive actions and improve the way you feel about yourself, we can help. Please call 847 328 7588 ext 501 for your free, 10 to 15-minute consultation to assess your needs. Or if you are interested in an intensive, you can email us directly to set up an appointment.
*https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2018.4468
