Rehab for Sex and Love Addiction

It is difficult to truly know whether we or someone else is suffering from a sex addiction or a love addiction.

There are many signs to look out for, however, simply looking out for and identifying with certain signs may not be enough to confirm whether or not someone is suffering from addiction.

Therefore, it is important that patients seek the diagnosis and professional treatment from health practitioners and addiction psychiatrists.

These clinicians will utilise reliable addiction screening methods in order to assess patients and not only answer whether or not they have an addiction, but assess the severity of their addiction.

One prominent example which is often used by health practitioners and addiction specialists is the Sexual Addiction Screening Test (SAST – R V2.0).

The test provides patients scores to separate those who are addicted from those who are not addicted.

The test’s questions have been used to diagnose tens of thousands of patients in the past. Some of the questions include:

Do you often find yourself preoccupied with sexual thoughts?
Do you ever feel bad about your sexual behavior?
Did your parents have trouble with sexual behavior?
Are any of your sexual activities against the law?
Were you sexually abused as a child or adolescent?
Yes or no – I have engaged prostitutes and escorts to satisfy my sexual needs.
My sexual behavior has put me at risk for arrest for lewd conduct or public indecency.
Yes or no – I have used magazines, videos, or online pornography even when there was considerable risk of being caught by family members who would be upset by my behaviour.

These are only a few out of 45 questions which can help you to discern if you have a sex and love addiction. As you can tell, some of these questions are simple, whereas others may make patients feel much more sensitive and vulnerable.

However, it is important to answer these questions with complete sincerity in order to accurately assess their addiction severity and the required form of treatment.

Questions such as ‘are any of your sexual activities against the law?’ or ‘were you sexually abused as a child or adolescent’ may make patients feel uncomfortable if they want to answer ‘yes’.

However, it is important to understand that these assessments are carried out with complete discretion and are only utilised in order to help the addicted person.

Questions to assess whether or not someone is suffering from love addiction may include the questions included in the Sexual Addiction Screening Test.

It may also contain other questions which focus on the emotions and independence (or lack thereof) of the patient.

Questions assessing love addiction may include:

Do you feel that you would lack your identity if you were not someone’s lover, romantic interest, or partner?
Does your life feel unmanageable due to your sexual and/or romantic behavior or excessive dependency needs?
Do you find yourself trying to deal with or wanting to escape life’s problems through the use of sex or “relationships”?
Was there ever a point that you wished you could stop or control your sexual and romantic activities for a given period of time?
Do you feel that life would have little to no meaning without a love relationship or without sex?
Do you find yourself in relationships that you believe that you cannot leave?

Patients can access more of these questions by visiting the 40 Questions of Self Diagnosis which was created by Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous.

These questions are useful to provide insight into someone’s addiction, and should not necessarily be utilised as a form of diagnosis.

Patients who feel they may have a sex and love addiction should always seek diagnosis from a professional.

The Admissions Process at Rehab 4 Addiction

When you call us at Rehab 4 Addiction by dialling the number 0800 140 4690, an experienced member of staff will be at your disposal in order to help you with answering questions and concerns.

This staff member will be a trained admissions officer who can facilitate your entry into sex and love addiction rehab.

However, you will only be asked to complete the necessary assessments and admission into rehab once you are ready.

We understand that it is an overwhelming thing to deal with behavioural disorders such as sex and love addiction, and we will not ask you to do anything which you are not comfortable doing.

Our priority is to help you navigate the process and receive the help once you are ready.

Once you are ready to begin the health assessment which is necessary towards admitting a patient into rehab, we can begin.

It is a simple process, as the trained admissions officer will ask you a series of questions regarding your physical and mental health, your medical history, your addiction, and so on.

The sex and love addiction admissions process will be done with complete discretion.

Once we have collected your information, a consultant psychiatrist can evaluate your condition in order to determine the necessary steps.

We can then work towards identifying a rehab and a suitable addiction recovery programme for your unique needs.

Contact us today at Rehab 4 Addiction, and not only can we help you understand your addiction, we can help you begin the treatment process and initiate your path towards long term recovery.

Tolerance and Withdrawal of Sex and Love Addiction

Similar to substance use addiction, it is not uncommon for patients suffering from love or sex addiction to experience an increased tolerance and withdrawal symptoms.

People suffering from sex or love addictions become addicted to the process and behaviours of their addictive activity and the dopamine levels that it releases in the brain.

For people addicted to sex, they may not be after the orgasm itself, but the dopamine release which is associated.

Their reward pathway will then be altered in a way in which they are constantly and compulsively chasing this feeling.

Over time, their tolerance may build and they will find these activities and actions less satisfying than previously.

This means that they will need to increase the intensity of their addictive behaviour.

Should they begin to abruptly abstain from this addictive behaviour, they may begin to feel plenty of discomfort in the form of sex and love addiction withdrawal symptoms.

These withdrawal symptoms may include headaches, irritability, agitation, erratic behaviour, and more.

In an attempt to overcome these symptoms, patients may relapse and indulge in their addictive behaviour once again, restarting the cycle.

Then, they may experience an increase in tolerance and eventually engage in addictive behaviour more intensely.

Difference Between Sex and Love Addiction

While there may be some overlapping symptoms between sex and love addiction, they are very different.

Sex addiction is a behavioural disorder in which the patient compulsively craves the physical act of sex with another person. It may also include porn addiction and masturbation.

While sex addiction is essentially the desire to commit a physical act and stimulate pleasure, love addiction is concerned with emotions more than a physical desire.

Due to experiencing things such as a low sense of self worth and mental disorders such as anxiety, for example, the patient will crave validation and approval through love.

How Sex and Love Addiction Affects Lives

While having a high sex drive or seeking love from someone may not necessarily be problematic in themselves, sex and love addiction will have profound effects on a patient’s life.

Their sexual and romantic relationships will suffer profoundly, as will their social life and relationships with other people regardless if it is sexual or not.

Their occupational or academic performance may also suffer and they may discard personal responsibilities.

Despite seeking intimacy and love from others, they may be driven to social isolation.

1. Social Effects of Love and Sex Addiction

When someone is suffering from sex addiction, they will be preoccupied by thoughts of sexual desire.

They may objectify their friends and peers, viewing them sexually and not being able to maintain a healthy and non-sexual relationship with them.

Despite the risks or consequences that pursuing a sexual relationship with these people may have, the patient may continue to do so out of compulsiveness.

They may even begin to associate work colleagues as potential sexual partners.

This will not only affect their professional relationship with colleagues, their occupational performances will suffer profoundly because it is an environment which exposes them to thoughts of sexual activity.

Furthermore, someone with a love addiction may suffer from social isolation by alienating those who they love.

This is because some of the common symptoms of love addiction include intense levels of co-dependency, jealousy, vulnerability, manipulation, and more.

These are all symptoms which may ruin relationships and push people further away, which will eventually exacerbate symptoms of love addiction.

Because the patient will crave feelings of love even more, but not have access to them, they will suffer mentally and emotionally.

2. Sex Addiction, and Sexual Offence Cases

Patients suffering from sex addiction are far more likely to engage in risky and dangerous sexual acitivites with others simply just to reach the satisfaction that sexual acts provide them.

They will be far more likely to meet up with strangers in order for sexual encounters, which not only can it place them in danger, but it makes it far more likely that they will contract a sexual transmitted disease or infection.

A study estimated that out of 1,968 acquaintance sexual assaults, 14% of these cases were due to dating-app first in-person meetings.

Furthermore, if someone is suffering from a sex addiction, they may begin to modify and intensify their sexual behaviours in order to reach the same stimulus as they did previously.

Whether this leads to fetishisation or illegal activity varies from person to person.

Much like with substance use disorders, patients suffering from sex addiction may build a tolerance to what they consider to be euphoria.

This means that they will engage in more extreme forms of sexual acitivity in order to reach the same level of stimulation as they once did.

Not all people who suffer from sex addiction suffer from the most extreme form.

This means that not all instances of sex addiction progress to the point where it becomes illegal.

However, those who do may suffer legal consequences due to not being able to control and subdue their urges but indulging in exploitative acts.

Some people who are unable to control their urges may resort to acts such as voyeurism, molestation, or even rape.

It is estimated that around 55% of those who are in prison for committing sexual offences are those who are suffering from sex addictions.

That is not to say that sex addiction always leads to exploitative criminal acts.

However, some cases are progressive to the extent that patients commit acts which they would not have previously foretold.

3. Love Addiction and Abuse

If someone is suffering from love addiction, it may make them more susceptible to falling victim to abuse within the relationship.

Because they are far more vulnerable than someone who is not suffering from love addiction, there are many cases of attachment mimicking Stockholm Syndrome between a victim and his or her romantic partner within the abusive relationship.

They are suffering from an attachment disorder.

Furthermore, while they may be suffering from a love addiction, they may not be the victim in the relationship.

People who suffer from love addiction may become manipulative or emotionally abusive in order to prevent their significant other from leaving the relationship.

Is Porn Addiction a Form of Sex Addiction?

While they are categorised as separate behavioural disorders, porn addiction is a form of sex addiction, and they share many common symptoms.

They are both behavioural disorders in which patients are preoccupied and obsessed over sexual stimulation.

Of course, there are notable differences. Sex addiction requires using someone else in order to stimulate pleasure, whereas porn addiction does not require personal intimacy but rather indulge in the viewing of sexual acitivites.

Both are considered to be chronic brain diseases and behavioural addictions by neuroscientists.

Sex addiction and porn addiction leads to drastic changes in the reward pathways of the brain, and the addicted person may even feel withdrawals or cravings to indulge in their addictive activity.

If you are suffering from a porn addiction, you require the same form of treatment in order to overcome a sexual addiction.

A porn addiction will pose many negative symptoms such as a chemical alteration in the brain’s reward pathways, increased tolerance, consuming more extreme forms of pornographic content, and so on.

Similar to sex addiction, the more that the patient engages in pornographic content, they will become more dependent on it in order to receive pleasure.

They may increase their consumption frequency and intensity, and it may lead to social isolation, relationship breakdown, romantic and sexual problems.

This could be as a result of erectile dysfunciton or unrealistic expectations.

Sex and Love Addiction & Co-Occurring Disorders

It is often the case that a patient who is suffering from sex or love addiciton is also suffering form another form of illness.

They may be suffering from a substance use disorder such as drug or alcohol addiction, or they may be suffering from mental health disorders such as anxiety, depression, trauma, bipolar disorder, and so on.

A person suffering from multiple disorders will receive treatment for both forms of illness throughout their addiction recovery programme.

It is important that a rehab identifies and treats both forms of illness, rather than prioritising one over the other, in order to recover and return to a life of optimal well being.

How Mental Health Disorders Affect Sex and Love Addiction

Mental health disorders such as anxiety, depression, trauma and bipolar disorder can exacerbate symptoms of addiction.

Someone who is suffering from sex addiction, for example, may also be suffering from anxiety or depression, and seek sexual activities as a form of dopamine release.

This is particularly the case of love addiction, where the person seeks validation and wants to increase their sense of self worth by receiving love from another person.

Similarly, if someone is suffering from love addiction, they will place an enormous amount of emphasis on maintaining a relationship.

Should this relationship break down, they may begin to experience even higher levels of anxiety and depression, and their physical and mental well being will suffer.

For those suffering from sex addiction and or love addiction, it is thought that both non-sexual and sexual abuse and trauma can be a significant driving force.

This is because if someone suffers from a traumatic incident, particularly at an early age, they may be suffering from a form of attachment related trauma.

Attachment related trauma can be emotional, physical, or sexual.

People who experience abuse or neglect from someone who was supposed to be a figure of care, may grow up feeling unworthy of affection or love.

This can be caused by a parent, guardian, relative or friend.

This can create not only trauma but feelings of worthlessness and self loathing.

Later in life, they may become co-dependent and increasingly attached to particular people in an attempt to restore control and maintain a reciprocal and healthy relationship.

This is essentially done in order to compensate for their lack of love during their childhood.

According to research, 87% of people addicted to sex also have a family member who is suffering from another form of substance or behavioural addiction.

Furthermore, around 82% of people who are addicted to sex claimed that they had previously been abused earlier in life.

How Drug and Alcohol Addiction Affects Sex and Love Addiction

Sex and love addiction are often linked to drug and alcohol addiction.

If a person may not have immediate access towards sexual acitivities, they may turn towards consuming drugs or alcohol instead.

The same study which discovered that 82% of people addicted to sex suffering from childhood or adolescent abuse also discovered that 42% of people addicted to sex were also addicted or dependent on substances such as drugs or alcohol.

Although only one form of sex addiction, it is estimated that 1 in 3 people who are suffering from porn addiction also suffered from alcohol addiction at one point.

Both sex and alcohol or drug consumption can release mood altering chemicals in the brain for people.

Additionally, many people may associate alcohol with sexual activities, and the relationship between the two may begin to increase for particular people.

Alcohol can momentarily increase testosterone, which may increase their sex drive and libido, meaning that they are more likely to engage in sexual acitivity.

However, in the long term, alcohol can significantly affect a person’s sex drive.

Should someone be suffering fromm a sex addiction, yet have their sexual functions compromised, they may increase their alcohol consumptions and indulge in other unhealthy activities in order to cope.

People may become more agitated, aggressive, and erratic if they are unable to fulifl their sexual desires due to the effects of alcohol.

There are other drugs which can significantly heighten someone’s sex drive such as Crystal Meth, for example.

If someone is consuming illicit substances such as Meth, and is also suffering from a sex addiction, it makes them far more susceptible to contracting sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV.

Should someone who is suffering from sex addiction contract HIV or a sexually transmitted disease, they may be more likely to spread it.

This is due to the higher frequency in which they engage in close contact.

Without realising, they may spread it to multiple people. HIV can amplify disease progression and halt recovery from other illnesses.

Misconceptions Surrounding Sex and Love Addiction

There are many misconceptions surrounding addictions, particularly behavioural addictions.

Many people are not educated on the subject, and are quick to judge those who are suffering from addictions.

This is often because they are unable to comprehend how engaging in an activity or consuming a substance can be so compelling.

However, these people are fortunate enough to not understand the truth about substance and behavioural addiction.

Sex and love addiction are not classified by the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).

However, behavioural addictions are still acknowledged by the organisation.

The World Health Organisation’s International Classification of Diseases (ICD) recognises sex addiction as a mental health condition, as does the American Society of Addiction Medicine.

Additionally, studies suggest that love addiction produces similar chemical changes in the brain to drug and alcohol addiction.

Engaging in these acts, whether sex, porn or acquiring love within relationships, can trigger a release of dopamine, serotonin, among other chemicals in the brain.

The more that the person experiences this, the more that they will come to rely on these feelings to be happy and experience pleasure.

While some people may downplay the severity of a sex addiction, it is in fact a brain disorder of chronic relapsing.

These desires not only make people desire sex, it makes them disregard any responsibilities that they have in order to reach these levels of pleasure.

This can include many different things, from maintaining personal hygiene to neglecting work and academic performances.

They may even lost interest in their hobbies, their relationships may suffer, and they will continue to suffer from love or sex addiction until they receive assistance from health practitioners.

Therapy at Rehab for Sex and Love Addiction

There are a range of therapeutic approaches which can be effective in treating patients suffering from sex and love addiction.

These forms of treatment are not designed in order to prevent patients from pursuing love or sexual activities.

Rather, it will help them manage their behaviour and the symptoms that they experience.

1. Individual Therapy (CBT & DBT)

Individual therapy is highly beneficial because it is essentially a personalised form of treatment.

In a standard session of individual therapy, patients will receive undivided attention from a licensed therapist.

This is with the aim of overcoming cognitive, behavioural, and emotional problems.

One of the most prominent examples of individual therapy is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.

This method of treatment is highly popular because it can help treat people suffering from substance use addictions, behavioural addictions (e.g. love and sex addiction).

This approach is also highly effective for people suffering from mental health disorders such as depression, bipolar disorder, and more.

During a typical session of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, the patient and his or her therapist will work together to understand what some of the self destructive and harmful patterns the patient exhibits.

These can come in the form of negative thinking patterns, or negative actions.

Together, they can find ways to discard these negative forms of thinking and behaviour in favour of newer and healthier forms of patterns.

Then, these positive changes can be used as forms of coping mechanisms when they are facing difficulty in all areas of life, not just addiction.

Furthermore, Dialectical Behavioural Therapy is another popular form of therapy to treat those suffering from addiction.

While it is very similar to Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Dialectical Behavioural Therapy is mostly effective when it is used to treat highly emotional patients.

Those who are suffering from intense feelings of emotions can learn about stress management, mindfulness, emotional regulation, and more.

These tools will help them manage their thoughts and feelings and process experiences more rationally in the future.

2. Holistic Therapy

Holistic therapy is effective for sex and love addiction because it is incredibly diverse.

Rather than only addressing either the body, mind, or spirit, it addresses each facet of the patient.

And rather than coming in one form, holistic therapy activities include but aren’t limited to acupuncture, massages, yoga, adventure therapy, meditation, music therapy, art therapy, and much more.

These activities can help patients reduce their levels of stress and anxiety and reverse some of the effects of a sedentary lifestyle and social isolation.

By engaging in positive activities, patients will improve their wellbeing by not only relaxing and being active but by fostering interpersonal skills, problem solving skills, and more.

Holistic therapy activities can act as substitutes for addictive forms of behaviour such as sexual intercourse.

By taking part in activities and engaging in positive experiences, patients will experience what is called behavioural activation.

This is when the patient activates pleasant emotions by engaging in activities which bring positivity.

This positivity can come in the form of goal setting, completing objectives, applying problem solving skills, and much more.

The more that patients engage in positive experiences, the happier they will become.

Furthermore, their mind, body, and spirit are intricately connected, and improving the health of one will provide benefits for the others.

3. Group Therapy

While individual therapy may be effective in treating patients who are suffering from love or sex addiction, so is group therapy.

It is not a case of which is better – when both individual therapy and group therapy are included in an addiction recovery programme, the patient has access to an effective treatment plan.

A typical group therapy session will include a number of patients ranging from around 4 to 10 patients with a licensed therapist facilitating discussion within the session.

Group therapy can pose a number of benefits for patients suffering from addiction.

By sharing the same non-judgemental and safe space as others who are on the same path towards recovery, patients will have access to a new form of support network and community.

This can promote social reinforcement. By placing patients in an environment which is shared with like minded individuals, they are far more likely to sustain their new and healthy habits.

This is because patients will offer positive reinforcement to each other.

4. Family Therapy

Including the family throughout the addiction recovery process can benefit the addicted person significantly.

Family therapy can help family members understand the complexities of their loved one’s addiction so that they can support them, and it can also address toxic and problematic behaviours in the family in order to create a safer environment.

Relapse Triggers and Prevention for Sex and Love Addiction

Once a person has overcome their love or sex addiction, they may still be susceptible to falling back into old routines should a relapse trigger appear.

This is why a formidable Relapse Prevention Plan is necessary at rehab.

Some of the triggers which could make someone who has recovered from love and sex addiction fall back into addiction include but aren’t limited to:

Mental and Emotional Stress: Those who are suffering from stress, anxiety, or worries concerned with their finances, relationships or anything which is troubling them, may resort back to former habits in order to cope. This could include revisting old toxic relationships or engaging in frequent sex in order to find temporary relief.
Boredom: While boredom may seem like an insignificant threat to someone’s well being, it can lead to people adopting or revisiting destructive behaviours, especially when they were previously suffering from a behavioural addiction.
Frustration: When a person is frustrated, they are more likely to take part in activities which are pleasurable in order to relax following their difficulties.

Because of the sheer amount of ways in which relapse triggers can manifest, it is essential that patients suffering from love or sex addiction undergo structure relapse prevention planning.

A comprehensive relapse prevention programme will teach patients how to discard their negative and self destructive habits in order to foster newer and healthy habits.

These new habits can act as coping mechanisms in the face of stress or uncertainty.

One popular relapse prevention method is HALT, which stands for Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired.

Patients who undergo the HALT method of relapse prevention planning will understand how they can behave when they are physically and emotionally craving an activity such as sex.

Aftercare Services for Patients

Just as patients will need to undergo a comprehensive relapse prevention plan in order to sustain their recovery, they will also be required to undergo an aftercare service.

Taking part in a comprehensive and qualified aftercare programme post-rehab is an effective way to reinforce what the patient has learned throughout rehab, and in order to help them apply these newly acquired skills and knowledge.

There are a range of aftercare programmes which range in duration depending on the patient.

Patients can choose to undergo aftercare for around 30 days or even up to a year.

The aftercare programme will be carefully personalised in order to optimise and maintain the former patient’s recovery post-rehab.

An aftercare programme will allow patients to attend support sessions at their rehab facility, and it will also grant them access to fellowship programmes such as Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous (SLAA).

Former patients can attend SLAA support sessions either in-person or online, where they will gain access to another form of support network where the members have a common goal.

It is estimated that those who consistently attend support sessions following their time at rehab are up to 6 times more likely to sustain their recovery without relapsing.

SLAA, much like other fellowship groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous, utilises the 12-Step Facilitation Therapy relapse prevention planning.

This helps to provide patients the necessary structure towards sustaining recovery.