Hypersexuality
an informative carrd by Bruce
warning: this carrd involves discussions of sexual things in a clinical and thorough, thought not explicit, way, and also talks about sexual assault and drug addiction.
What is hypersexuality?
Hypersexuality, also known as hypersexual disorder, or compulsive sexual behavior, is an obsession or fixation on sexual behaviors that impacts the hypersexual person's life in significant ways. Sexual behaviors involved in hypersexuality include fantasies, masturbation, sex (cybersex included), and pornography. Hypersexuality causes these sexual behaviors to become a major or even primary focus in the hypersexual person's life. Hypersexual people experience distress related to their hypersexuality, including guilt when having sexual thoughts or doing sexual things, low self esteem, and harmful behaviors related to sex.
What causes hypersexuality?
Hypersexuality can be caused by a few different factors. Chemical imbalances, such as an increase in serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine, can cause hypersexuality. These chemical imbalances can be caused by drug addiction, so drug addiction can also cause hypersexuality. Mood disorders like bipolar disorder can also cause these increases, and many people who have manic episodes as a part of a mood disorder gain hypersexuality as a result. A change in neural pathways and brain conditions can also cause hypersexuality. Another major, and common, cause of hypersexuality is trauma, grooming, and abuse, especially during childhood or teenhood. Grooming and childhood sexual abuse (or CSA) is an extremely common cause of hypersexuality. When CSA occurs, the child doesn't know how to cope with the unwanted sexual attentions. Some survivors of CSA become sex repulsed to distance themselves from the sexual abuse they faced, but some become fixated on sex because of the abuse, causing them to become hypersexual.
What are the symptoms of hypersexuality? How do I know if I'm hypersexual?
If you experience multiple of these symptoms, you may be hypersexual:
-Sexual behaviors, fantasies, and urges take up a significant portion of your time, to the point where it feels out of control.
-Sexual behaviors get in the way of your daily life.
-Feeling an intense urge to do something sexual, then after doing it, feeling a release of tension, but also guilt or shame.
-Failure to reduce sexual behaviors even when attempted.
-Sexual behaviors become a method of escapism; you do sexual things as a way to deal with stress, anxiety, depression, and/or other negative emotions.
-You engage in risky sexual behaviors without regards to consequences, even though you know it's dangerous.
-You struggle to create and maintain healthy relationships due to your sexual behaviors.
What are some common misconceptions about hypersexuality?
Misconception: Hypersexual people are just horny/have a high libido
Reality: Hypersexuality goes further than a high libido. A high libido is a normal thing that many people experience, whereas hypersexuality is caused by external factors and is uncontrollable
Misconception: Hypersexual people will become sexual predators
Reality: There is absolutely no evidence, concrete or anecdotal, that suggests that hypersexual people are more likely to be sexual predators than non-hypersexual people. Seeing as shame after sexual behaviors, and the fact that many hypersexual people are survivors of sexual assault, it wouldn't make much sense if hypersexual people were more likely to be sexual predators.
Misconception: Hypersexuality is the same as a sex addiction/masturbation addiction
Reality: Despite the fact that hypersexuality is grouped with sex addictions in some articles, they are seperate things. Not every hypersexual person has a sex and/or masturbation addiction, and not every person who has a sex and/or masturbation addiction is hypersexual. While the overlap is there for obvious reasons, they are not the same.
Misconception: Hypersexual people are always thinking about sex
Reality: Hypersexual people still lead lives outside of sex. While hypersexuality causes an increase in sexual behaviors and urges, this doesn't mean hypersexual people don't do nonsexual things, or that they're always focused on sex. An increase in sexual behaviors and urges ≠ constantly thinking about sex.
What support is there for hypersexual people?
Hypersexuality can be treated in many ways, and results vary from person to person. There is no "right way" to deal with hypersexuality, and as long as the person isn't harming themselves or anyone else, there is no "wrong way" to deal with hypersexuality either. The treatments for hypersexuality include:
-Anti-depressants, either to deal with the mental disorder that is causing the hypersexuality, and in some cases, to lower sex drive/libido.
-Mood stabilizers, if the hypersexual person is hypersexual because of a mood disorder.
-Therapy can be used to help learn effective coping mechanisms for hypersexuality, or it can help with the mental illness or trauma that causes some people's hypersexuality.
-Some hypersexual people chose to deal with their hypersexuality with no medical professional help, which is perfectly valid. Self help for hypersexual people includes: Educating yourself, identifying triggers, learning relaxation/stress management, learning mindfulness, and, if the hypersexual person uses sexual behaviors to cope with negative emotions, learning ways to cope with negative emotions that don't involve sexual behaviors.
My sources
Below are links to articles about hypersexuality that I either used for research or I think are helpful. I also used some personal knowledge as a hypersexual person myself. If you have any questions, don't be afraid to message me on Twitter! My Twitter is @braadvengolor