Is porn a problem? Have you been wondering how porn can affect your life? Would you like to know the negative and positive impacts of porn? This article explains some of the problems that are associated with porn.

Porn refers to movies, photos, and stories created for consenting adults for sexual pleasure. Porn has transformed over the years due to the availability of the internet. Many people watch, read, look at and listen to porn. There is nothing wrong with that because if one is not okay with watching porn and doesn't wish to be exposed to it, there's nothing wrong with that either. It all comes down to a matter of personal preference. 

Porn can be a Problem if You Don’t Engage with it Right.

People who use porn can use it without negative consequences. Both single and people in committed relationships can enjoy porn as it can add sexual enjoyment to your relationship. For some people, porn can get in the way of their relationships, like when one of you enjoys porn, and the other is completely against it, or if one of you likes a type of porn the other can't stand. De Alarcón et al. (2019) explained that using porn too much can, at times, make one have unrealistic sexual expectations as most individuals who are largely exposed to porn are more likely to feel dissatisfied in their sex life.

What You See in Porn is Not Reality

Porn actors and directors get together to film porn for a targeted audience. When watching porn, keep in mind that everything you are watching is fiction. When individuals start comparing their body and sexual performance to the fictional porn standards, they may be in for serious self-esteem issues.

Benefits of Porn

Humans have different desires as sometimes one may wonder if their desires are normal. People are too intimidated or embarrassed to talk about things related to sexuality. Feltwell et al. (2017) stated that some of the benefits of porn include helping discover new things, and it's a safe way to explore and validate your sexuality.

A Way to Discover New Things

According to Futrell (2021), most individuals don't know which best position is best for them; thus, it is one of the reasons why people use porn to satisfy their curiosity. For young folks, college is a time for learning and exploring new things, including sex. About 92 percent of men and 50 percent of women said they had been exposed to sexually explicit content. Men tend to use more of all types of porn than women. Also, about 75 to 90 percent of people search porn on the internet out of curiosity to improve their sexual skills and knowledge and increase sexual enjoyment.

A Way to Explore and Validate Sexuality

There is some proof that porn can be helpful to people who are looking to explore their sexuality or understand their sexual identity. It may be very useful to people living in rural areas or communities where it's hard to engage with other people about their sexuality freely.

Regular Consumption of Porn Can Be a Problem

According to Hagar (2020), consuming too much porn and getting lost may lead to unachievable expectations. You might start severely looking at your body and expecting your sex partner to do things they don't like or perform like porn stars. When one is not careful enough, porn can be a problem in a romantic relationship. Research into how regular consumption of porn affects you is ongoing as the problem turns out that people don’t want to talk about it openly because they fear being judged, but the studies rely on self-reporting. Some effects of porn consumption are rather subjective. When scrutinizing research findings, you should understand how the study was conducted, who participated in it, and who funded that particular study.

 It’s also important to know that studies may have conflicting results. McNabney et al. (2020) explained that higher use of sexually explicit material was associated with less sexual and relationship satisfaction, lower age at first intercourse, and a higher number of sexual partners. Also, it is likely that porn delays first sex for some people, and that other people watch porn instead of having sex. 

Only you can decide whether porn is a problem or not for you.

It all comes down to what you feel is right for you, not what people think. When one is a fan of porn, and it doesn't negatively affect their life, that is fine. When one thinks porn is wrong for them, they don’t have a reason to expose themselves to it. It is a valid choice, and no one can question you about it since porn is not for everyone. When individuals worry about their sexual performance or have issues with their body image, they may consider examining their motivations to use it more cautiously. The following are some signs that one may be struggling with the use of porn:

• You end up spending more time on it than you would want.
• It’s affecting your work or relationships.
• You have no control over your use porn, and it stresses you out.
• You have unrealistic sexual expectations.
• You find it hard to experience pleasure during sex.
• You feel guilty about engaging with porn.

Reach Out for Help if You Are Concerned About Your Habits

When one knows of any primary care doctor whose specialty is sexual health, they may be their best option. You can ask to be referred to a certified sex therapist who can help you explore the impact of pornography in your life.

Conclusion

People can enjoy porn as often as they want or check it out once in a while. Others don't enjoy it or find that it's more harmful than worth it. Porn is a personal thing, and only you can decide what is best for you. The likelihood that porn is a problem depends on the person consuming it.

References

De Alarcón, R., De La Iglesia, J. I., Casado, N. M., & Montejo, A. L. (2019). Online Porn 

Addiction: What We Know And Don't—A Systematic Review. Journal Of Clinical Medicine, 8(1), 91.

Feltwell, T., Vines, J., Salt, K., Blythe, M., Kirman, B., Barnett, J., ... & Lawson,

S. (2017). Counter-Discourse Activism On Social Media: The Case Of Challenging

“Poverty Porn” Television. Computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), 26(3), 345-385.

Futrell, L. (2021). Is Porn The New Mistress? A Sexual Betrayal Study. California Institute Of Integral Studies.

Hagar, M. G. (2020). The Problem Of Pornography. The Idea Of An Essay, 7(1), 2.

Mcnabney,

S. M., Hevesi, K., & Rowland, D. L. (2020). Effects Of Pornography Use And Demographic Parameters On Sexual Response During Masturbation And Partnered Sex In Women. International Journal Of Environmental Research And Public Health, 17(9), 3130.