Effects of Watching Pornography

This is not a blog post on the moral judgment of if pornography is good or bad. As a psychotherapist, I do my best to stay away from making moral judgments about anything specific. Because for me it is more important to ask the question what are the effects of watching pornography in your life?

How Pornography Effects You?

All research listed throughout this article can be found in the book Your Brain On Porn. You can buy it on Amazon. You can also check out the website Yourbrainonporn.com

First off pornography usage has changed drastically in the last 15 years. Before the high-speed internet, smartphones, and billions of pornography websites porn’s novelty would run out quickly. A new magazine once a month or a video would get old after viewing it a few times. Yet over the last 15 years, users now have access to more new content than ever before creating a never-ending supply of novelty.

The Coolidge Effect

When men get sexually aroused by new mates the brain release dopamine. Dopamine drives good feelings and pushes men towards having sex. Yet once you have been with the same mate for a while, the dopamine rush is lowered. 

But Coolidge Effect is an ancient biological program that can override your sluggish contentment after orgasm if new there are new sexual partners. So ever increasing porn images creates more and more dopamine rushes. Your brain can not tell the difference between real sexual partners and porn images.  This is why it is common to be able to have an erection and climax with porn but not your wife or girlfriend. 

 Your brain is literally getting high every time you view pornography.

Physical Effects of Watching Pornography

• 2014 the medical journal JAMA Psychiatry published a study showing that even in moderate porn users correlate with reduced gray matter and decreased sexual responsiveness.
• Viewing porn correlates with depression, anxiety, stress, and social functioning. As well as less sexual and relationship satisfaction and altered sexual tastes, poorer quality of life, poor health and real-life intimacy problems.
• Porn usages can lead to a decreased interest in sex with real partners.
• Porn usage can lead to delayed ejaculation or the inability to orgasm. These tend to be a predecessor of porn-induced erectile dysfunction

Relationship Issues From Watching Pornography

Most women in long-term committed relationships have issues with pornography. You can read more about how porn hurts your partner by clicking here.

•  A 2007 study found mere exposure to porn images cause a man to devalue his real-life partner. Rating her lower not only in attractiveness but also warmth and intelligence.
• After pornography consumption (both sexes) report less satisfaction with their intimate partner, including their partner’s affection, appearance, sexual curiosity, and performance.
• Porn usage is correlated with increased importance to have sex without emotional involvement.

Take our porn addiction assessment to see if porn is a problem in your life. 

While these are just some effects of watching pornography, don’t correlate these effects with porn addiction. Addiction, compulsivity or overuse can lead to these adverse effects in your life.  If you find yourself have any of these issues because of viewing porn, you can reverse any of these negative symptoms and start healing.

How To Start Healing

The road to healing pornography addiction or pornography overuse is a long road. Because most men have been viewing pornography since about age 10, it takes a while to reset your brain. Step one in healing is to stop viewing pornography. If you view pornography often, you might even have withdrawn symptoms. 

We have created a free download PFD we will email to you that talks about the most common withdraw symptoms and how to manage them. 

Healing requires long term recovery, and you can learn about our online recovery program here or better yet sign up for our FREE online course – Your First Step into recovery. 

Pornography Addiction Resources 

Part of long term healing is to learn as much as you can about pornography addiction. I have put together a small resource list for anyone struggling with porn.

    •    Your Brain on Porn –  This book is full of studies about how porn impact the brain. Along with taking examples for people who have struggled with the negative effects of watching pornography. 

    •    Out of the Shadows of The Net – This books is all about the rise of porn addiction. Yet it can help anyone understand why they turn to pornography to deal with uncomfortable emotions such as sadness, boarded, rejection and stress.

Richer Life Recovery Online Treatment Program – This 12-course online treatment program help you stop using porn, and give you to tools to live a life of recovery.