Hypersexuality
From Encyclopedia of Sex and Sexuality
The term “hypersexuality” is used to describe the entire range of conditions more familiarly described as promiscuity, satyriasis, nymphomania, sexual addiction, and erotomania. Today it is more often referred to as compulsive sexual behavior (CSB).
The driving force behind compulsive sexual behavior is the person’s need to reduce anxiety; the specific sexual behavior involved is less important. It may be considered paraphiliac (an addiction to unusual sexual practices) or nonparaphiliac. Although nonparaphiliac behavior is generally accepted as “normal” sexual behavior, individuals suffering from CSB often carry it to pathological extremes. An example might be masturbation, generally accepted to be a normal behavior except if carried out compulsively, non-stop past orgasm, or until physical injury or pain occurs.
However, some forms of nonparaphiliac behavior, even when taken to extremes, might actually be normal when they occur within the framework of appropriate psychosexual development. For example, adolescents may be obsessively occupied with sexual matters for months at a time, and such behavior may recur in episodic form later in life. Here, the distinguishing factor is that the behavior exists for a limited time only and the individual eventually returns to a normal behavior pattern.
The most commonly know examples of CSB are those pathologies that fit into the group of behaviors classified as paraphiliac. These behaviors have both conscious and unconscious elements. They are characterized by intense sexual fantasies, are distressing to the person, and are overwhelmingly compelling in intensity. These behaviors are devoid of any feelings of love; their only objective is the elimination of anxiety.
Paraphiliac behaviors include:
- Exhibitionism: exposing one’s genitals to unsuspecting strangers;
- Fetishism: sexual fantasies involving material objects such as women’s shoes;
- Pedophilia: sexual activities involving an adult (the pedophile) and a child;
- Sexual Sadism: achieving sexual excitement by imposing on others acts which cause them psychological or physical pain;
- Sexual Masochism: receiving abuse, punishment, torture, or humiliation to obtain sexual excitement;
- Voyeurism: surreptitiously observing unsuspecting persons disrobing or engaging in sexual activity;
- Zoophilia: using an animal for sex.
Hypersexuality is a response to anxiety caused by a psychiatric condition. It is an attempt by the mind to defend itself against tremendous emotional discomfort, which may be temporarily relieved by the sexual activity. Hypersexuality is a form of obsessive-compulsive disorder; it is not the result of a hormonal imbalance nor do such individuals have a high level of sexual desire.
Treatments for hypersexuality are still evolving. As yet there are no precise or preferred therapies. Treatments currently in use may include behavior therapy, individual or group therapies, and/or various medications. The newest class of serotonergic antidepressants seems to be emerging as particularly helpful because they seem to have antilibidinal properties that lower the intensity of sexual drives. Antiandrogens—drugs that lower the level of male sex hormones—have had limited success in treating these disorders.
