Sexual Addiction May Be Linked With Co-Occurring Mental Illness

A desire to have sex all the time, accompanied by obsessive thoughts about sex, can indicate a sexual addiction – a serious condition that requires professional help to reach recovery. Recent posts and articles about the nature of sexual addiction are bringing the compulsive desire for sex into the light, and initiating more conversations about how sexual addiction or sexual compulsivity can be related to other co-occurring mental illnesses or conditions.

Those addicted to sex may have much more happening at the emotional and cognitive levels than just a desire for sex. Researchers and professional addiction treatment providers state that sexual addiction is most often rooted in deep-seeded insecurities and a significantly hampered ability to form close personal relationships. It can also be connected to serious depression, anxiety disorders, mood disorders such as bipolar disorder, and even ADHD. This can apply to adults as well as teens.

A growing body of research on sexual addiction is also exploring the ways the condition is similar to substance or alcohol addictions, and how sexual addiction can cause changes at the brain level. The causes for sexual addiction are complex and multi-faceted. This is similar to other addictions, including co-existing mental or emotional disorders tied with fears and anxieties. For some teens and adults with sexual addiction, obsessive-compulsive disorder is also present.

Sexual addiction places the person in a reoccurring cycle of anxiety, shame, guilt or anger and escalates over time. However, professional treatment can help patients identify underlying problems that are linked with the addiction and break the pattern of destruction caused by sexual addiction.