Hi, I'm Chris, 26 years old. I spend several hours a day with porn. I am a virgin and I have problems achieving orgasm, or even higher levels of arousal. I have problems with depression and social anxiety. I never realised that my porn habits could contribute to these things until I saw a TED talk about. I really don't want to give porn up, but if it can help me with my problems, I really want to try quitting. I know it's going to be difficult, but I really want to succeed, so I am asking for help, support and advice to make it through this. Please.
Hi Chris, well you are exactly at the right place! All of us here have our individual struggles with porn and the absolute terrbile effects it has on our sexuality and as you experienced on erectile dysfunction. I think first of all you should make sure that fully understand that porn is harmful and that it is not just something normal or something everyone does. It effects you not only physically but mentally as well, it causes you to feel ashamed, lonely and insecure. Read in the forums about the experiences all of us had and find people with similar struggles. I know you can change! And I believe if you learn to control yourself and get rid of porn in your life it will very much have a positive influence on your "real life" experience with woman and sexuality. All the best mate!!
Welcome to NoFap Chris! You've taken the first step towards recovery by reaching out and seeking help. As someone who has struggled with some of the problems you've dealt with, I can tell you that my more successful streaks with NoFap have helped greatly with these aspects. It's important to remember when quitting PMO, you will have a lot more time on your hands, as you said in your case several hours a day. It's important to find healthy ways to fill this time, otherwise you will be sitting around bored and this leads many, including myself to relapse. Meditation and exercise are recommended for many, I do both and if you have questions on getting started with either I'd be happy to help. Things that would help with social anxiety could be helpful, even something small like going for a walk or reading a book in a coffee shop. Putting yourself around others and not a computer screen is a great step. I'd recommend seeking out an accountability partner, someone you can talk to on a regular basis to make sure you're on the right track and to get help from when you need it. There are threads on NoFap about this, I'd recommend leaving a post if you haven't already found a partner. I'd be willing to help you out here, if you'd like to leave me a message. However my schedule this week will be quite hectic, and I'm unsure of how often I'll be able to communicate, just as a heads up. I wish you the best of luck! P.S. A helpful post to get you started: http://www.nofap.com/forum/index.php?threads/my-top-tips-for-leaving-pmo-behind.35201/
I went walking when I got really tense and it helped get rid of some energy, and kept me away from my laptop, which was probably the best side-effect. Thanks. The accountability partner sounds good in theory, but I'm not that good at updating/replying swiftly, it usually takes a couple-three days. I'm a kinda social media/ forum shy in some ways. Additionally talking about these things is hard, and uncomfortable.
I know talking about these things can be hard, even though I have an accountability partner, I sometimes have anxiety about telling him when I relapse. However, I always feel better when I open up and share. Holding onto shame can be detrimental towards NoFap, as it can lead to more relapses. What you do is completely up to you, but learning to open up about your journey will be very helpful for you I think, and can even be a good exercise in improving how you deal with social anxiety. We're all going through the same struggles, so NoFap is about as judgement free as you can get.
