Sexual Addiction from an RT/CT perspective

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Somebody asked about this topic but I can't find the item so here is a new heading for it.

It is my understanding of Glasser's work that he does not see any form of sexual attraction as an "addiction" any more than breathing is an addiction. I get the impression that some people claim to have a sexual addiction as a way of saying that they cannot control their sexual urges. This is a dangerous perception to hold. In any case, ultimately all addictions are helped by the person taking some degree of control. This does not mean it's easy ... but using the word "addiction" can suggest that it might even be impossible, never a healthy hypothesis in therapy.

-- B Lennon (blennon@indigo.ie), December 27, 2002

Answers

I am just now reading Glasser's "Reality theory in Action" and it seems to me that he addresses 'addiction' quite well in the chapter entitled 'Roger', where he discusses his counselling of an alcoholic. (Also relevant in this book is the chapter 'Judith' where a seemingly promiscuous 16yo girl is relealed as making very deliberate choices.) My amateur opinion from Glasser's analysis of these cases would be that the sex addict is no different from a pornography addict or the alcoholic called 'Roger'. In each case the person is opting for quick intense pleasure as an escape from pain. The pain is often the result of poor relationships. Glasser shows in this book that the resolution is not easy but possible given the commitment to the right choices and the forming of satisfying relationships. I agree that Glasser would probably avoid the use of the term addiction in practice. However he does admit the possibility that people who have been alcoholics may always be more liable to relapse even years after their 'cure'. I have read some research that the same applies to reformed sex addicts and pornography addicts (Sorry I can't recall the source). --R. Carter

-- Roger Carter (Roger.Carter@utas.edu.au), May 11, 2003.

This isn't so much an answer as it is a suggestion. Years ago WGI stateside invited Dr. Robert Lefevre to our annual convention and WGII once invited him to Dublin (back in the days when we met at St. Pat's on Drumchondra). He may have some interesting thoughts about his issue in terms of addiction being in the person, the organized behaviors, and the persistant QW picture(s). Robert has a series of questionnaires to help a person self assess and each has about 30 questions; go to the one on "sex."

-- suzy hallock-bannigan (suzyatdonegal@aol.com), May 17, 2003.

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