Compulsivity
Children and adolescents unfortunately live in a world in which hard core pornography is Available,
Anonymous, and Affordable. This is very different than Playboy magazines their parents may have
been exposed to as children. When children are exposed to pornography it can often be experienced
as traumatic, in that he or she experiences a cocktail of emotions and feelings in the body. Often
times there is a mixture of shame, curiosity, excitement, and fear. He or she likely does not
understand what is viewed, and if it is not processed a child and adolescent can often seek to
view more sometimes to “unsee” what they have seen, or out of continued curiosity. It is estimated
that most children today between the ages of 9-11 will have been exposed to pornography. Our team
of Certified Sex Addiction Therapists (CSAT) are trained and experienced in helping and coaching
parents in protecting their children from unintended exposure, as well as facilitating the
conversation with their children about what he or she is viewing on their often various devices.
It is important to remember that shame breeds secrecy and the goal is not to shame children for
what they have viewed, the goal is open, nonjudgmental conversation.
Our team has CSAT’s that are trained and experienced in working with the adolescent that has
developed his or her own compulsive, or addictive process with pornography. Again, it is important to
remember that curiosity and desire for information is often the driving force with adolescents seeking
pornography. As many parents would likely agree, we would rather have their childs' sex education come from the
parent, so it is taught in a format aligned with the family values, than the misinformation given in
pornography. When working with children and adolescent’s, parental involvement is often at the base of
the work done in assisting the individual with their recovery process. In our world, most adolescents
have a device seemingly glued to his or her hand. That being the primary mode adolescents use to
communicate, it is no wonder that Sexting occurs, and can become a form of compulsive acting out.
This typically occurs somewhat innocently and the reason for this is typically attention and curiosity.
When these pictures are sent the child has now exposed him or herself to bullying and other vulnerabilities,
and the recipient is vulnerable as well in that these pictures are documented as child pornography.
If you are concerned about your adolescents use of inappropriate material, please contact us so we may
provide your family with the necessary support.
Important Links about the effect of pornography on children.