Lets start off this blog discussion with this verse from the book of John 8:36- If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. Porn has become a very widespread topic and I still believe to this day that it it kills men of hope, dignity, confidence and relationships. For most of my teen years I was addicted to pornography simply due to its pleasurable affects. Through a psychology study, it reported that 98 percent of men have watched porn in the last six months.
Psychology behind Porn: But the psychology of watching porn goes much deeper then experiencing the satisfaction and enjoyment of it. What happens is when you watch porn your brain fires chemicals in your brain called mirror neurons. A mirror neuron is a neuron that fires both when an animal acts and when the animal observes the same action performed by another. Thus, the neuron "mirrors" the behavior of the other, as though the observer were itself acting. In other words, mirror neurons is your power to be receptive and responsive to what you expose your mind and senses to. With that being said, sex as been known to be apart of a motivational theory in psychology comprising a five-tier model of human needs known as Maslows hierarchy of needs. Which goes into stating that sex is part of our psychological needs into being humans. In another token sex is a divine powerful orchestration of Gods love and restoration. In the book of Genesis 2:24 it says "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh." Sex is not only a human need but its a spiritual need and union ordained by God.
The Effects of Porn (or any addiction): The brain rewards watching porn because, "It is known as the feel-good neurotransmitter, a chemical that ferries information between neurons. The brain releases it when we eat food that we crave or while we have sex, contributing to feelings of pleasure and satisfaction as part of the reward system. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter made in the brain, which is a chemical substance that is released at the end of a nerve fiber by the arrival of a nerve impulse. Dopamine is released when your brain is expecting a reward. When you come to associate a certain activity with pleasure, mere anticipation may be enough to raise dopamine levels" (psychology today). So the more and more you watch porn, just like anything that makes you feel good, brain activity within your brain says "yay, thank you, lets get more of that" this release causes your brain to focus more of its attention on the experience. As a result, you’re left with a strong memory of the pleasure you felt. This strong memory can prompt you to make an effort to experience it again and again for the stimulation and pleasure. "As habit forms, the brain responds by toning down the dopamine. Now you need more of the substance to get to that same pleasure level" (healthline). This information is just to state the science and direct evidence in just to how you can become restrained and controlled by your emotions and desires of emptiness or even lack of love.
Why Addictions Occur: The book of Ecclesiastes goes into stating, "“Meaningless! Meaningless!”
says the Teacher.
“Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless.” (Ecclesiastes 1:2) Which lets us know that life is meaningless without God because God is everything and most importantly God is love. "We love him, because he first loved us." (1 John 4:19) A lot of times even for myself, I would encounter alot of different temptations including porn because of the void we all have as human beings. We fill our voids up with pleasure because as humans we are always seeking fulfillment and the need to be loved. However we the temporary moments of pleasure typically only lead to disappoint and condemnation.