Reliable figures for the number of diagnosed sex addicts are difficult to come by, but the Society for the Advancement of Sexual Health, an education and sex-addiction treatment organization, estimates that between 3 and 5 percent of the U.S. population—or more than 9 million people—could meet the criteria for addiction. Some 1,500 sex therapists treating compulsive behavior are practicing today, up from fewer than 100 a decade ago, say several researchers and clinicians, while dozens of rehabilitation centers now advertise treatment programs, up from just five or six in the same period. The demographics are changing, too. “Where it used to be 40- to 50-year-old men seeking treatment, now there are more females, adolescents, and senior citizens,” says Tami VerHelst, vice president of the International Institute for Trauma and Addiction Professionals. “Grandfathers getting caught with porn on their computers by grandkids, and grandkids sexting at 12.”
I don't know whether to believe this "sex addiction" stuff or not. I tend not to, and think it mostly about promoting interests of the treatment industry. In my little social world, I hear a lot from doctors about their patients and have heard of many sorts of addictions, and alcohol and drug addiction, not to mention gambling, are common, but rarely if ever have I heard of anything that sounds like a real addiction to sex, as opposed to just generally scummy behavior. "3 to 5 percent of the U.S. population" sex addicts? -- Ridiculous, I would say.
If I am found by a doc to be a sex addict, can I qualify to park in spaces for the handicapped?
Posted by: jim kirby | November 30, 2011 at 03:45 PM
My criterion for "addiction" is "if you tie him to a telephone pole will he start to shake without his drug." I figured that out during the Clinton presidency.
It's not an addiction, it's a (bad) habit.
Posted by: Michael Tinkler | December 01, 2011 at 03:22 AM