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Is porn in itself bad?

Discussion in 'Porn Addiction' started by zachoooo, Nov 20, 2013.

  1. zachoooo

    zachoooo Fapstronaut

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    I've been doing NoFap because it's been really negatively affecting my sex life. My cousin kept showing me NSFW pictures and sending me links and what not since we're pretty close. I finally got up the nerve to tell him to stop and why I wanted him to. He said that's ridiculous and that he browses porn all the time and has none of the negative effects that I do. He also revealed that he almost never masturbates to it. So I'm wondering is porn actually bad? Or is it the fact that we orgasm to it that causes problems.
     
    Wugazi32 likes this.
  2. There are different ways to look at it. Two things you can tests on yourself to see is if you can masturbate without using your computer/ tv (turning it off or look away) and still orgasm, and if you can have sex with a real person and orgasm without having to force the orgasm out/ intensely think about porn to be able to achieve orgasm.

    I found out that I was addicted to porn when I was unable to orgasm during sex with my one night stand.
    Porn is bad, yes. But there are also some porn that is really good for you (that teaches you all the stuffs that you don't learn on school). But the more extreme it is the worse it is for your body, it makes your mind think of women as sexual objects and not as a real person with feelings etc and makes you think that the things they do in porn movies is completely normal.

    When you watch a porn movie, think about the way the actors is performing...sure, touching and kissing etc, but they always do it in a position where you can see the actual sex. They are never covering the act. Some positions are actually really painful to be in but it gives a great view so that do it that way.

    This video might get you some answers https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSF82AwSDiU

    Good luck and I hope it was some kind of help.
     
  3. Manticore

    Manticore Fapstronaut

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    I think it's more a subject of how certain people react to it and what we're predisposed to.

    The first time someone told that they watched porn and didn't masturbate to it, I couldn't understand why. It seemed counterintuitive to me. Why? Because, I'd always masturbed to porn. I started watching porn and then masturbed TO porn. I never just masturbated. The two were connected to me. From what I've gathered with my friends, some masturbate just to masturbate and watch porn just to watch porn. Some people do both, like we do, but in more moderation. I think it starts causing problem when it veers into obsession.
     
    Wugazi32 likes this.
  4. William

    William Fapstronaut

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    Have you ever heard of the "Coolidge effect"? You might want to look it up. Our brains have evolved to reward sexual thoughts and sexual activity. Before porn, our brains got that reward by actual sex or MOing to sexual thoughts of....actual sex. The problem with porn is that our brains do not distinguish between sex on the screen and real sex. Our brains can be rewarded endlessly though PMOing. When I say "rewarded" I mean our brains can release dopamine, a chemical that creates euphoria, through PMOing. It is not so much that porn is "bad", but for some of us, porn stimulates our brains in a bad way. The fact that porn is negatively effecting your sex life and you recognize this is actually a good thing for you; you recognize the problem, so now you can go about fixing it. The morality of porn aside, PMOing causes your brain to reward PMOing over actual sex. I don't know how your sex life has been negatively effected, but I know mine was (and to an extent still is)by use of porn. I say "use" because porn causes the release of brain chemicals similar to the use of drugs. My advice is if you are having a problem with PMOing, then try to quit P altogether, but if you can't at least do that, separate the P from the MOing. Don't reward your self for watching P--that's where the brain gets in trouble. Good luck.
     
    Wugazi32 likes this.
  5. Scott1971

    Scott1971 Fapstronaut

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    I don't think porn in and of itself is necessarily "bad" per se. I think the really deviant, disgusting, nasty stuff is (incest, bestiality, rape fantasies and especially pedo shit etc.) I do believe that it can be used in moderation as an enjoyable alternative for those who perhaps otherwise don't have a real physical partner or in some cases, enjoyed by couples as an enhancement to their sex life.

    But we're here because we don't do moderation very well. Whether it's our individual natures to have addictive tendencies or that years of porn use has re-wired our brains to want more and more of it. Like alcohol, in responsible moderation, it's fun and mostly harmless. In excess it can cause serious problems both physically and emotionally.

    I know much of it is exploitative though and it's difficult to know just what actors genuinely enjoy what they're doing and are working under some form or regulated conditions, or if they're being forced or tricked into it for whatever reason.

    I also know that most porn paints a very unrealistic picture of what real sex is. 99% of all of the scenes you see would likely never happen in real life. ("Oh, how will I ever pay for this pizza mr delivery man?") I'm not saying things like this have never happened in modern history but the chances are slim to none. The point I'm trying to make though is that porn conditions us to think these scenarios are more likely than they actually are and that these kinds of things happen all the time. That all women are just horny sluts willing to use their bodies as barter or they're all that easily seduced.

    So again, while I don't think it's "bad" I don't necessarily think it's "good" either. It's a very grey area to me, dark grey. It's shady and easily exploitable and easy to over indulge in. I don't think there are many that can handle it in moderation and now that "porn addiction" is becoming more widely recognized, I think more and more are going to identify themselves as addicts that thought they had it "under control".
     
    Wugazi32 and Starboii like this.
  6. Heneman

    Heneman Fapstronaut

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    I agree with most of the sentiments expressed here. There are some/many people who can look at porn and not masturbate, or do so occasionally but would have no problem stopping. Porn in & of itself isn't innately addictive. However, as to whether it is bad for us or not, I would say that it definitely has an impact on society in general. It celebrates misogyny and teaches us that, as a lot of people have said, women are things to use, and ones that secretly like to be raped. If a person's addiction escalates too far, this can lead to them acting out in real life. It happens. Women get raped, harrased, & touched innapropriately every day (Obviously not every woman every day, but ask someone you can trust to give an honest answer, and likely they'll be able to relate at least one situation where they were made to feel uncomfortable). Even if someone isn't addicted, their brain subconsiously says "this is okay, this is the norm. If she doesn't like blowing me or having anal sex then she's weird". There's also the fact that it enables a market in which young women (and men), people's daughters and sisters, do get tricked or coerced into thinking it's some sort of glamorous way to easy money, and end up getting in way deeper than they meant to (I know someone who had this happen to them), not to mention a (horrifying) thriving child porn market. It's not bad in the the-devil-is-bad-and-god-is-good way, but it's certainly had some negative effects on our culture. (This is totally aside from instructional videos which depict normal sexual experiences, and would not be classified as pornography)
     
  7. JFC

    JFC Fapstronaut

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    It's maybe not "bad" if you've never masturbated to it, but masturbating to Porn can rewire so much stuff in your brain and how it's supposed to seek for sexual reward. It messes people up (like the 80,000 people on this website.) Getting off to porn is addictive is all, and like all addictions, it brings negative effects.

    I wouldn't recommend looking at porn at least while you're still trying to recover. I can't say what looking at it down line would do, so I'll leave it at that.
     
    Wugazi32 likes this.
  8. president

    president Fapstronaut

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    Most people are able to control themselves with most things. I can eat junk food and drink a beer without being a food addict / alcoholic, as most people here probably could. But forget about a casino. It's too close to that instant push button-reward feeling that sucks you in. Everyone has things in their own life they can manage that are a problem for some other people, and I find remembering that helps me to be less ashamed and more productive in working to get rid of my own compulsion.
     
  9. DireWolf

    DireWolf Fapstronaut

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    It offers nothing good or real human benefit either to those who participate in creating it or to the ones who watch it, so yes, its is bad all in on itself
     
  10. I fall on the extreme end of this because of how bad my addiction was. I really think porn is degrading how society functions and how men and women relate to one another.

    I saw a great documentary by VICE in which they talked about Japan's sex industry. And I don't mean actual sex, I mean porn, masturbation toys, and sex dolls. Apparently there's a high rate of 40-year old virgins in Tokyo, and the younger generation is notably more introverted.

    I think you can take Tokyo as a sample of what happens when a generation of users become more interest in artificial stimulation and lose interest in real life. Some guys in the documentary had no interest in meeting women (they weren't gay), they just said they had better things to do.

    There are plenty of triggers in it, but I urge you guys to look it up. It's an interesting look at how far male/female relationships can dissolve in a society.
     
    Wugazi32 likes this.
  11. Pretty much. Can you think of an example where porn is a good thing? The actors have a record of being abused: sexually, emotionally, mentally, and financially.
     
  12. hope2013

    hope2013 Fapstronaut

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    People have differing views about whether porn is good or bad. Think of porn as any other type of addictive and harmful drug like say cigarettes. Every puff of cigarette smoke affects your lungs whether you are aware of it or not. The affects of porn usually come when you enter into a committed relationship with a significant other and problems arise. This is akin to a person's lung starting to fail years later after the smoking habit is already ingrained and hard to kick off the habit. But remember that when the smoker quits smoking he/she increases his/her life expectancy. This same goes to your personal health when it comes to quiting pmo.
     

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