The Demise of Guys: Why Boys Are Struggling and What We Can Do About It Read Online Free PDF Page B

certain negative effect of boys watching lots of porn is a growing feeling of penis envy, of not measuring up, so to speak. That self-consciousness in a realm so important for male identity is surely a source of disguised discontent. This can be seen in public locker rooms, where many young guys refuse to disrobe, undressing in the showers and covering themselves when they come out. Consider that more men under 30 are being prescribed Viagra than ever before to ensure adequate performance. 88 Once such drugs are perceived as necessary to sexual success, it becomes meds over matter in that realm. Ad campaigns that started with old-timers years ago have shifted to ever-younger looking men who want to be ready for action at the hint of sex.

Dude, where’s my erection?
    The most powerful sex organ is the brain, and for men, that’s where an erection starts. So what happens to your brain when you watch porn? Gary and Marnia Wilson, creators of the website Your Brain On Porn ( yourbrainonporn.com ), compared Internet porn to excessive gambling, video game playing, and food addiction — all of which can cause brain changes that mimic drug addiction. Conveniently, the same part of your brain where arousal occurs is the same place where addiction takes place: the limbic system. That’s where your reward circuitry is and where you experience the desire to eat, have sex, take risks and fall in love, as well as pleasure and libido. It’s here that you get turned on — or off — or addicted to something.
    Gary Wilson explains that because dopamine is the primary neurotransmitter that turns on the reward circuit, the more aroused you are sexually, the higher your dopamine level. The higher your dopamine, the more you crave something. Dopamine is also the basis for the motivation to achieve your desires, and in the context of sex, it’s central to sexual desire and erections. An erection won’t happen if there is not enough dopamine to signal the reward circuitry. Dopamine skyrockets with novelty, so with every new sexual partner or sex scene, you are getting another surge of dopamine. If your dopamine starts to decline — that is, your erection starts to dwindle — you just click on something else to boost yourself back up. And with Internet porn, there is always something new, exciting or ever-more shocking only a click away.
    However, watch enough porn and your reward circuitry will essentially get burned out because it has been overstimulated by your dopamine system and thus becomes less responsive. At this point you become dependent on new porn, because you need more and more stimulation to become aroused and get that penis saluting again. Eventually, the porn pathway in your brain becomes so strong that you are no longer sensitive to normal or usual stimuli, such as sex with a real person.
    “Internet porn is now a powerful memory that calls to you at a subconscious level — because it’s the most reliable source of dopamine, erections and relief from your cravings. … This is what happens with all addictions. The more you overstimulate the reward circuitry by jacking up your dopamine, … the less it responds. Think of a flashlight with fading batteries. In simple terms, your reward circuitry isn’t providing enough electricity to power your erections,” says Wilson. He notes that porn-induced erectile dysfunction “is not psychological — it has a physiological cause. It’s a symptom of an addictive process that has altered the brain.” These changes associated with continued heavy porn use can cause numerous consequences: 91
Lack of spontaneous erections.
Lack of arousal by static porn or previously viewed porn. Often guys need to escalate to more extreme material just to get aroused — a sign of addiction.
Decreased penile sensitivity — indicating the brain has become numbed to pleasure.
Delayed ejaculation or the inability to orgasm during sex with a real partner.
Copulatory impotence — the inability to