“Am I addicted to porn?” is one of the most common questions people ask when they are practicing NoFap and semen retention, and dealing with an ongoing porn habit. But in my experience mentoring men who are battling addiction, the better question to ask is, “How addicted to porn am I?”
The reality is that if you have an unwanted habit of watching porn ongoingly, then you DO have an addiction. It’s not about how often you act out or whether or not it’s an “addiction”, but rather where on the Spectrum of Addiction you are.
Depending on where you are on the Spectrum of Addiction will inform what you need to do to reboot and recover from a porn habit for good.
The Spectrum of Addiction Explained
The Spectrum is a self-defined scale of 1 to 10. I’ll explain what these mean.
It’s not about how often you act out sexually, but it’s more about what LEADS you to PMO and how you FEEL afterward.
1–3 Range
On the tame end of the Spectrum, people usually PMO once a month or once a week because of an identifiable trigger, such as seeing some explicit content online or in a movie. Importantly, people at this end of the Spectrum feel very ashamed, disgusted, and depressed after acting out. Typically, teenagers and people just getting into PMO are at this end.
4–6 Range
In the middle of the Spectrum is where the vast majority of people are. People in this range usually act out once a week or a few times per week, and the reason for acting out is usually to escape a difficult negative emotion or difficult situation, such as stress, anger, frustration, depression, boredom, etc. The feeling after PMO is usually associated with guilt, but not as much as the 1–3 Range.
8–10 Range
At the extreme end of the Spectrum are people that PMO every day or every other day. Importantly, the reason they act out is not because of any identifiable trigger or stressful moment. Rather, they PMO out of habit. And if they don’t PMO, they start to experience withdrawal symptoms, such as irritability, anger, depression, frustration, and agitation.
Why the Spectrum of Addiction is Important
The reason that finding your place on the Spectrum is important is that it dictates WHAT you will need to do to rewire and reboot from a porn addiction.
If you are on the 1–6 Range, you CAN reboot and quit porn for good within 21 days, but only if you’re serious about it and are willing to do the work. If you’re at the 7–10 end of the spectrum, then the 21-day reboot is the perfect starting point to get your brain detoxed and ready for long-term recovery and healing.
This video explains this concept in DETAIL.