When masturbation comes to mind it is usually linked to a “horny” teenage boy stimulating his genitals under his bed covers – unbeknownst to his mother. Although this is a common perception – it is a false one. Teenage boys are not the only ones that masturbate – girls do too, along with people of all ages, races, religions, sexual orientations, economic statuses, and educational backgrounds.

Masturbation is very common. And, while it may be a “harmless adult pastime” for some, for others it is a gateway to masturbation and/or porn addiction – a serious condition. Masturbation does have some benefits, such as releasing sexual tension or just tension in general, triggering or improving blood flow to the genitals, easing pain and discomfort, promoting happiness or sexual satisfaction, lowering high blood pressure, easing stress, alleviating headaches and migraines, etc. These are great things, but when masturbating becomes compulsive and uncontrollable, it is a problem.

If you are struggling with excessive or chronic masturbation, especially if it is linked to porn use, then it is time to seek porn addiction help. This article offers 10 techniques that can help you stop masturbating before it becomes an addiction.

What is Masturbation?

Did you know that approximately 84% of Americans admit to self-pleasuring aka masturbating – about 92% of males and nearly 76% of females? Well, it is true.

In a nutshell, masturbation is a form of sexual self-stimulation. It is also a form of sexual expression. It is a way to relieve pent-up sexual tension or frustration and experience sexual pleasure or satisfaction. Some people masturbate occasionally, and some masturbate regularly – either case is fine as long as it does not negatively impact a person’s life in some way. In other words, if you only masturbate every once in a while, for instance, when you become bored, stressed, or ill, and it does not cause negative consequences then that is okay.

And, if you masturbate regularly and it does not cause negative consequences that is also okay. Conversely, if you masturbate occasionally and it causes problems in your relationships, especially your romantic one, lowers your self-esteem and self-confidence, causes you to miss work or be late to work (thereby affecting your finances), and/or triggers feelings of shame, guilt, anxiety, or depression, then it is a problem. The same can be said if you masturbate regularly and experience similar things. Keep in mind, however, that masturbating does not cause mental or physical problems for people who engage in this activity.

What is Porn Addiction?

Porn addiction involves an involuntary and compulsive use of porn. In other words, porn addicts are unable to stop using porn without porn addiction help, even if they want to. Porn addiction will not simply “go away” with time. It is also impossible to ignore or dismiss porn because it is powerful and all-consuming. Porn can “affect” every area of your life, leaving chaos and destruction in its wake. Porn is so mighty that it can destroy relationships, marriages, families, and your self-confidence.

Porn use can cause you to withdraw from your life, friends, and partner because of shame and guilt. Thus, it is a hidden addiction. Most heavy porn users or addicts socially isolate themselves because they do not want others to get wind of what they are doing in their private time. Many times, porn addiction is combined with masturbation. A porn addiction diagnosis stems from self-reports, observations, and psychological assessments, rather than diagnostic tests and labs.

Fortunately, however, this addiction can be treated using a multi-treatment approach. This approach may involve porn addiction therapies, like cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), medications, like SSRI antidepressants, and/or alternative treatments, like mindfulness meditation, semen retention, the NoFap Challenge, and/or Stop Together, an online porn addiction recovery program.

Is Masturbation Linked to Porn Use?

It can be.

Many porn users like to masturbate to the sexually-explicit images on their screens. Some of these individuals get to the point where they can only become sexually aroused if they watch porn and can only experience orgasm and sexual pleasure if they masturbate to it. Why does that happen? It happens because their brains have been “rewired.” More specifically, neural pathways in the brain are “tricked” into believing that masturbating to porn is a “reward,” so this activity becomes an ingrained “habit” that keeps the user returning to it until it becomes a full-blown porn/masturbation addiction.

When many of these individuals try to engage in sexual activities or try to have sex with their partners, they experience sexual issues, such as erectile dysfunction (ED), impotence, premature ejaculation (PE), sexual performance anxiety, low or non-existent libido or sex drive, anorgasmia (a lack of orgasm), etc. In other words, it affects these users’ abilities to fully engage in sexual experiences with their partners.

Should You Stop Masturbating?

It depends on the frequency and severity of it. If masturbating is causing you strife, then it is time to let it go before it destroys your life and causes you to become dependent on it. But if it is not causing problems in your life, and it brings you relief or joy, then you can continue with it. However, the minute it starts causing you problems, you will likely need to seek porn addiction help (if the masturbation is linked to porn) or sex addiction or masturbation addiction help, if porn is not involved. So, ultimately, the best way to determine if you should stop masturbating is how you feel about it and how it is affecting your life.

What Are Some Techniques That Can Help You Stop Masturbation?

There are several techniques that can help you stop masturbating before it gets out of control or turns into an addiction and destroys your life.

Listed below are 10 techniques that can help you stop masturbating:

• Do Your Research

If you do not know much about the effects or signs and symptoms of porn addiction or chronic masturbation, you will need to research these topics, if you want to stop masturbating. If you understand what could be triggering your compulsive need to masturbate to porn – or without it, you will be more equipped to stop it. So, learn as much as you can about the causes, possible triggers, and effects of masturbation.

•  Find Something To Do

If you want to stop masturbating, you will need to find something to do. If you are busy, you are unlikely to watch porn, masturbate, or masturbate to porn. Why not? Because you simply do not have the time to engage in these activities. If you normally masturbate at night, if you have filled your day with activities, you will probably be too tired to do anything but sleep.

So, when the urge to view porn and/or masturbate arises, get out of the house and do something. If you do not have anywhere to go or are unable to leave your home, then leave your bedroom or wherever you normally masturbate. You are less likely to masturbate outside of your comfort zone (i.e., your bedroom). If you can leave your house, try to do something enjoyable, like visiting friends, going shopping, getting a massage, exercising at the gym, going to an event, etc.

• Get a Job

If you do not already have a job, you probably will want to get one, because it will help you stop masturbating. If you tend to masturbate the most at night, consider getting a night job, or if you tend to do most of your masturbating during the day, consider getting a day job. Remember the goal is to thwart your masturbation attempts. Try to avoid jobs that involve the Internet, because this could get you in trouble – or fired.

It is easy to visit a porn site at work if you have access to the internet, especially if you tend to masturbate to porn. The only way you will not be tempted to view porn and masturbate is if porn sites are blocked on your company computer or if you have a manual labor job or a job that involves other people, or puts you around others. If you have to use a computer and the Internet, try to get one where you are surrounded by people, like an onsite call center job.

• Get a Roommate

If possible, get a roommate. Getting a roommate can help you stop masturbating. If you have someone in the home with you, you will be less likely to view porn and masturbate, because you will be too afraid that they will find out what you are doing. Even if you have your own room, you will likely be afraid that your roommate will hear you masturbating or watching porn and masturbating, so you will refrain from doing it. So, get a roommate to keep you accountable.

• Stop Watching Porn

If you want to stop masturbating you will stop watching porn or get rid of your “porn stash.” Porn can be a catalyst for masturbation, so if you tend to masturbate to porn – stop watching porn. If porn is linked to masturbation, if you stop viewing porn, you will likely not masturbate because porn is the trigger for masturbation.

If you are wondering how you can stop watching porn, you can install anti-porn software onto your devices, and move your devices, namely your laptop or desktop computer into an open space, like your kitchen or living/family room. You can also lock your devices up and give the key to a friend or loved one for safekeeping in a safe. The only way you will be able to retrieve your devices is for your friend to unlock the safe.

• Have Lots of Sex

One way to stop masturbating is to have sex – lots of sex. If you are having sex, you probably will not need to masturbate or masturbate to porn because you are getting the same “high” from having sex. Truth be told, having sex is more emotionally and physically fulfilling. It is also more fun and exciting because it is real and you get to have real-life sexual encounters, not self-stimulate to fantasies.

With sex, you get that one-on-one interaction, which can help you build a stronger and healthier relationship and deeper emotional and spiritual connections with your partner. Having sex can also help you experience the sensations that come with physical intimacy.

• Go to Bed Early

If you are asleep, you cannot masturbate, right? You also can not watch porn and masturbate. So, try to go to bed early each night to avoid masturbating. Establish a bedtime routine to help you relax right before bed.

This routine may involve taking off your clothes when you get home from work and putting on something more comfortable, preparing and eating dinner, calling a friend or loved one, scrolling through social media and catching up with old friends, watching television, taking a warm bath or shower, reading a book, watching a TV show or movie, climbing into bed, and turning on some soft music before going to sleep.

The key to making this technique work is going to bed before urges to masturbate or masturbate to porn arise.

• Layer Your Clothes

If you have a bunch of clothes on, it can deter masturbation. No one wants to undress a thousand pieces of clothing to masturbate, so layer your clothes to stop masturbating. So, if you start to have urges to masturbate or masturbate to porn, throw on a bunch of clothes, such as longjohns, boxers, pants or jeans, a belt, button-up t-shirt, shirt, sweater, coat, socks, and shoes.

• Join a Support Group

A good way to cope with urges to masturbate or masturbate to porn is to join a support group. Support group members can be there for you as you try to curb your masturbation activities. If your masturbation is associated with porn, you may want to consider joining a porn addiction support group, but if porn is not involved, you can always join a support group that focuses on masturbation.

Support groups can teach you how to handle urges to masturbate while providing you with tips, advice, and support. With the right tools and strategies, you will be equipped to deal with urges to view porn and masturbate. Some support groups that can be beneficial for a chronic masturbator include Pure Desire, Celebrate Recovery, Sexaholics Anonymous (SA), Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous, and Recoveries Anonymous.

•  Seek Help

When all else fails and you do not know what to do – seek help. Addiction specialists can help you get a grip on your masturbation and/or porn-watching endeavors. More specifically, an addiction specialist can teach you coping skills and strategies so you do not resort to masturbating or masturbating to porn when you become stressed, anxious, depressed, bored, or ill.

These medical professionals also can provide support and resources to help you get through the rocky patches. More importantly, an addiction specialist can help you determine the origin of your excessive or chronic masturbation activities, and identify your triggers, so you do not encounter them in the future. Thus, a porn addiction therapist or a sex addiction therapist can help you stop masturbating.

References

• Robbin, M. (2018). Survey reveals the masturbation habits of American men and women. Allure. Retrieved from https://www.allure.com/story/masturbation-survey-statistics-american-men-women
• Cleveland Clinic. (n.d.). Masturbation: Facts & benefits. Retrieved from https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/24332-masturbation