Brain on Porn (Social #1), DeYtH Banger [red queen ebook .TXT] 📗

If playing some video games and watching porn sounds like a thrilling weekend plan, you might have a problem. According to psychologist Phillip Zimbardo, young men’s brains are being “digitally rewired”, creating a new form of addiction through the excessive use of pornography and video games.

Is watching porn and playing video games related amongst young male gamers? Can playing cooperative games be the answer to decrease possible porn addiction?

The relation between video games and porn addiction

Phillip Zimbardo’s latest study is showing some interesting results. It is an in-depth look into the effects of video games and pornography with a sample size of 20,000 young people, of which 75% are male. In an interview on the BBC World Service weekend program, Zimbardo spoke about the results of the study:

“Our focus is on young men who play video games to excess, and do it in social isolation - they are alone in their room.

And now, with freely available pornography, which is unique in history, they are combining playing video games, and as a break, watching on average, two hours of pornography a week." – Source

When asked what Zimbardo considers “to excess”, he noted that they consider anything above seven hours a day “to excess”. As an individual with a degree in psychology, I can safely say that social isolation can cause a wealth of problems and lead to addiction, especially if a person already suffers from Addictive Personality Disorder.

Freely available pornography fills the internet; no one can argue that fact. What effect does it have on a gamer? Any type of addiction can lead to a decrease in pro-social behavior. It doesn’t matter what a person is addicted too, addiction is never a good thing.

Zimbardo notes that there is a “crisis amongst young men”, who are experiencing a “new form of addiction” via excessive use of video games and pornography. He continues by stating that: “It begins to change brain function. It begins to change the reward centre of the brain, and produces a kind of excitement and addiction. "What I'm saying is, boys' brains are becoming digitally rewired." - Source

Phillip Zimbardo is a world renowned psychologist, famous for the Stanford prison experiment in 1971, where students took on the roles of guards and prisoners. He is a respected member of the field of psychology, noting that the issue can lead to porn-induced erectile dysfunction (PIED): “Young boys who should be virile are now having a problem getting an erection.”

The connection between watching pornography and erectile dysfunction is a disputed issue, for example an article from Psychology Today, shows no scientific links between the use of porn and erectile dysfunction.

In the video below, Phillip Zimbardo talks about the problems facing young men with regards to their academic achievement and social development, citing excessive use of pornography, video games and the internet as the main culprits.

An example of the mindset of a young male addicted to pornography: “When I'm in class, I'll wish I was playing World of Warcraft. When I'm with a girl, I'll wish I was watching pornography, because I'll never get rejected." - Source

Gaming addiction can lead to antisocial behavior, for example World of Warcraft players were jailed for child neglect last year. If social isolation while playing videogames leads to pornography addiction or vice versa, what could help lighten the load on young male gamers?

Thankfully, gaming could be the answer to the pressing issue! Instead of leaving gaming behind, playing with friends can actually increase pro-social behavior.

Increasing pro-social behavior via cooperative games

Players can give each other a “helping hand” by teaming up for some cooperative gameplay experiences. Not only will it help someone stay away from pornography (you probably won’t watch porn at a LAN), but a new study has found that cooperative games increase pro-social behavior. Two or more people working together toward a common goal and benefit could be the key in decreasing anti-social behavior caused by gaming and porn addiction.

Assistant professor of journalism and electronic media at Texas Tech University, John Velez, conducted a study which shows a positive relation between playing cooperative video games and an increase in pro-social behavior; in both violent and non-violent video games.

 “I did this study to figure out in general why cooperative play was so powerful in creating that positive effect.  That expectation (of reciprocation) is very powerful in determining pro-social behavior but it also seems that playing with a helpful teammate can inspire players to behave pro-socially without the expectation of receiving anything in return.” - Source

The relation between porn and gaming addiction, according to Phillip Zimbardo, is due to the social isolation of playing video games alone in your room. Therefore, increasing pro-social behavior via cooperative play could be the answer to decreasing porn addiction brought on by the apparent “isolation” due to playing video games.

Do you think there is a relation between video game and porn addiction? Do you prefer to game alone or with friends? Let us know what you think in the comment section below.

An Open Letter From A Porn Addict

We hear from our Fortifiers all the time and their stories inspire us. The struggles they go through, the steps they take to recovery.

But what does it take? What do you have to really do to make it porn-free?

The answer to that question might be a little different for everyone but our buddy Brent has been through the ringer and come out on top. He has some suggestions for those currently struggling and those who want to support their friends and family.

Hey Friends,

You may have noticed my Porn Kills Love t-shirt. It’s definitely a conversation starter. Let me tell you why I wear it. Not many people want to talk about it, but people everywhere and over 70% of men struggle with pornography. It’s the elephant in the room, yet we pretend it doesn’t exist. I am here to tell you that it does exist — and for years it controlled my life.

The first time I was exposed to pornography I was 12 or 13 years old. I was at a friends house surfing the internet and we accidentally came upon a porn site that we quickly shut off. When I went home that night I couldn’t get the image out of my head and I was curious enough to search the website again for a second glance. I only looked for a minute or two before realizing that it was a site that I most definitely shouldn’t be looking at online (I can still vividly recall the image more than 10 years later). After that night, I didn’t look again or think much of it— until my college years.

When I was 23 years old I was going through a difficult time in life and I found myself looking at porn as a way to distract myself from the pain and hurt that I was feeling. Many people believe that only perverse, highly sexualized, dirty minded people look at porn — and that simply isn’t true. I didn’t look at porn to be sexually stimulated, but to avoid the sadness, depression, and loneliness that I was feeling. As it developed into my method of escape, I needed more and more porn to feel, “Normal”. It became a vicious cycle — the more I looked at porn, the more isolated and depressed I felt, which ultimately led to more hours of porn.

I finally decided that enough was enough. I was tired and exhausted of swearing off porn, only to find myself on those same sites a couple of weeks later. I knew that I needed to find help outside of what I was currently doing; thankfully I was blessed to find a great therapist that specialized in men’s issues and pornography addiction.

When I first walked into John’s office I knew that I had a problem, but when he told me that I had an addiction I was a little taken back. He gave me some material and a book to read and in the following weeks, I learned about my addiction and how similar it was to other addictions. An alcoholic doesn’t drink for the fun of being drunk. He drinks to escape his out of control life, numb his pain, and to forget about his worries — and that’s exactly what I was doing.

I wish I could say that all it took was a couple of sessions with my therapist and several hours of reading, but overcoming my addiction to porn was the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. For over a year, I frequently met with my therapist to work through my addiction. I got an accountability partner, joined an online recovery program, met with my ecclesiastical leaders, counseled with trusted friends, and I even tried hypnosis. It was a constant struggle of finding the strength to make good choices when everything else in my mind, body, and addiction told me to do otherwise.

In the deepest, lowest point in my recovery I remember laying in bed crying and contemplating taking my own life. I couldn’t live another day as a prisoner to this addiction. I wasn’t me anymore; I didn’t want to look at those images and videos anymore; I wanted to be me. I wanted happiness and to finally be free from this thing that was so shameful that I felt like I couldn’t tell anyone about it.

At first I failed — a lot. There were setbacks, defeats, and a good amount of struggling that took place. Each time I acted out and viewed porn, I had to remind myself to be patient. This was an addiction that I had built over years and it was going to take a good amount of time to learn healthy new habits, put them into practice, and change my behavior.

Slowly, I started having small, but crucial moments of success — a day, a week, a month with no setbacks. I started to trust myself and believe that change was possible; that life could be different and step by step I started to regain my freedom. I started to be me again and prove that I could do hard things. I no longer felt the same intense urge to view porn, escape, or numb out. I started to find joy again in living and no longer felt quite as enslaved by my addiction. I started to fill my life with the things that I love to do.

Some time has passed since I’ve been caught in the addiction cycle, but honestly I still have moments of weakness. I still have setbacks, but they are far and few compared to the days that I am strong. I can’t say that I will never slip up again, but I can say that I will never again let porn control my life. I now have the tools, skills, and support to learn from my mistakes and setbacks. I know when I need to make life adjustments, find greater balance, and when I need to reach out for help.

I am sharing this story with you because I trust you and despite my weakness, I want to be seen and loved for who I am — a guy trying everyday to be a better man, brother, son, and friend. I am sharing this with you because there is too much shame and silence around this topic in our society. For years, I was terrified and too ashamed to confide in anyone that I had a problem. For too long, I faced this battle alone. There are too many good guys out there struggling in quiet desperation for help — lets help them.

As I have opened up about my porn addiction to friends and family, I have found that I am not alone and some of them have struggled or currently struggle with pornography. It has been extremely rewarding to be a support to others, whether its being an accountability partner, sharing my story, or directing them to external resources.

On my journey to recovery, I learned a thing or two about overcoming addiction that I think could be beneficial for others to know.

–No