Here’s a dialog between a forum member and Gary, which forum members found really helpful:
What is the mechanism by which P without M and O during a reboot can cause damage? The brain is not associating that P use with the positive sensations of sexual release that come with M and O
Porn is the addiction. It’s really that simple. I’ve never heard of anyone developing ED from masturbation, especially young healthy men. On the ED FAQ we described a man who developed ED in his twenties from watching porn, and only masturbating once every ten days. Porn is what spikes dopamine, without the need for physical stimulation. Porn is what causes tolerance as men view more and more or escalate to more stimulating genre.
As you know, there is no research on the brains of porn users. What we know about the fastest path to recovery, we learned from men recovering from porn. That’s the short answer to all your questions. However, since it’s clear that addiction mechanisms are involved with porn-induced ED, one can make educated deductions. I wouldn’t use the word “damage,” although it may seem that way to those with ED. However, structural changes do occur.
What would be the argument against exposure to P – without M and O – in order to *unlearn* the association? I mean, why wouldn’t “unsatisfying” exposure to P accelerate the rebooting process?
As above. That’s like taking away the glass to prevent an alcoholic from drinking. The belief that excessive masturbation caused the addiction or caused ED is ingrained. I see it all the time on forums. Guys will quit masturbation, but not porn, and when they get poor results, they say quitting to solve ED is BS.
Analogy: If you teach dogs that they get food (analogous to M and O) when you ring a bell (analogous to P), then the ringing of the bell causes them to anticipate food. If you stop ringing the bell for a long time, but then ring it again after a few months, they will still have the positive association between the bell and food, and anticipate the food upon hearing the bell. However, if you simply continue ringing the bell (analogous to P) but stop supplying the food (analogous to M and O), they will quickly unlearn the association between the two. I.e. the bell loses its power more quickly.
As stated, porn is the addiction, so merely “ringing the bell (using porn)” would be the same as the alcoholic drinking. That said, porn and masturbation are tightly linked, so certainly men must eventually unhook masturbation from porn. The Pavlovian analogy is quite accurate.
In this case the “bell” is masturbation, and the goal is to not trigger porn use when you masturbate. That’s one of the reasons men avoid masturbation, so they don’t go Pavlovian, and automatically use porn to do the deed.
It might seem to make sense to masturbate a lot without porn during the reboot, to unhook porn from masturbation. Some ideas are better in theory than in application. Clearly, the guys who do the best in terms of ease and thoroughness of recovery avoid all PMO.
Logic would say that “avoiding porn is all one needs to do” to recover from porn-induced ED. I wouldn’t be surprised if some men do regain erectile health while still masturbating. If they do, I suspect it takes far longer, and that they face an ongoing struggle with cravings.
For whatever reason—perhaps because it jolts the brain into recalibrating—in practice, cold turkey on all PMO yields the fastest results and is the easiest path. We have never seen anyone recover from porn-induced ED who maintained a frequent masturbation schedule.
Maybe it’s analogous to an obese person who must severely restrict calories to lose weight. Think of masturbation continuation as a diet that meets your caloric needs, whereas no masturbation is the strict diet you need to accomplish your goal.
One very obvious aspect of ED recovery is continually overlooked: If you can’t achieve a full, strong erection without your drug of choice, it’s your brain telling you “I can’t do this.” Would you walk on a broken leg? There are consequences to ignoring your body’s signals.
ED from disease or aging bears no relation to porn-induced ED. Still, some men with porn induced sexual issues behave as if the two are the same. They force erections with fantasy or Viagra, and force ejaculations even though much effort is involved. That’s “walking on a broken leg.”
Assuming that exposure to P without M or O does retard progress during a reboot, how much less is its negative effect from a full-on PMO relapse??
Unknown.
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