i can't stop

You are masturbating to your imagination or to porn or pictures or any other type of stimuli?

 

Okay, so it's time for some ugly truth here. First off, you CAN stop. With help, you can absolutely stop. You need to take measures to beat this addiction. It will never come find you. You ha e to go out there and work long and hard for a win.

For us addicts, lusting is an instinct, obtaining and refraining is a constant and willing decision that has to be made. If we don't make the choice to stay sexually sober, the choice will be made for us, by our addiction, and it will NEVER be what's best for us. So saying that you can't stop isn't really the truth. Masturbating with or without O, watching porn, looking anywhere with lustful gaze is our own doing.

There are so many resources available that are dedicated to lust/porn/sex addiction. CSAT therapy, DA 12 step program, podcasts, websites, books, articles...the list goes on and on. But for the people who simply sit back and "hope" everything works out for them are like the guy who wants to be a pilot, and is running up and down the runway flapping his wings, hoping to fly. He has to do the work to get a ilot's license, get access to a plane, and learn to fly it.

You CAN stop. The question to be asked is this: WILL you stop?

 

100% this...recovery from this addiction takes ACTION! You provided some great suggestions and recovery tools that are available for the taking...hopefully OP will take action...because recovery IS possible.

 

Very few people can't stop, and it's harder for some than others, but as the others here have said, YOU CAN STOP.

Put in the work, find the resources and help to assist you. Give it your best and I think you will find that you can stop.

 

Adding to what others have said, I'd do what you can to get out of the house for a few days to give yourself some momentum. If that's at all possible. Go on a very short trip and don't take any device you can access porn with.

 

Remove all artificial sexual substitutes. Apply the caveman test.

Whatever you are doing, ask yourself if a caveman ancestor of yours would have had access to it. If yes, go ahead, if no, STAY AWAY FROM IT.

Only 2 things pass that test. 1. Sex with a real woman 2. Masturbating to your own imagination.

As long as you follow this, naturally your desire to masturbate will reduce after a few weeks. But even if it does not it's okay. Go at least 6 months without porn or any other substitute and most of your problems will sort themselves out. Good luck!

 

I'm not quite on board with this. If a man masturbates to his own imagination, that's a reset. Cavemen never had the opportunity to use the internet, email a coworker, text a friend, or see other friends' pictures on social media. There are always ways to slip up in this addiction. Limiting one's self to the restrictions a caveman would've had osn't the most effective way to win this fight. Using the addiction-fighting resources available now is the best way.

CSAT therapy
12 step SA program
Podcasts
Websites
Books
Articles
Accountability partners
SA sponsors
Internet blockers/filters

There are all kinds of tools to help us.

 

Yup... exactly

 

Personally, I add a 3. to the list, which is cave art. When I permit myself, I have been m*sturbating to >3000 year old erotic cave drawings.
It's widely known that our cavemen/cavewomen ancestors painted/carved these on their walls. Although I'd suggest anyone to check the research on this, there *are* occasionally unblurred images, which might be a trigger.

With the understanding that this has been done since prehistory, I think it's permissible.

What do people think about drawings made by oneself, out of curiosity?