HyperSexuality

Ramine Nimrouzi **Hypersexuality ** **History of Hypersexuality/Nymphomania ** Hypersexuality, or nymphomania, is a term that was first coined in the Victorian age. Men in those days thoroughly repressed the women of their time and held standards of nymphomania that today would be deemed normal or not a symptom of Hypersexuality. In fact, if a woman was deemed a nymphomaniac she would be placed in an asylum to be ‘cured’ with various treatments. “A woman could be placed in an asylum for nymphomania if she was promiscuous, bore illegitimate children, was a victim of an assault or rape, was caught masturbating, or suffered from man-craziness, a term used during this time period to describe flirtatiousness. When a woman was brought to the asylum, she was subject to a pelvic exam where the doctor claimed she had an enlarged clitoris th  e size of a penis” (Frick, 2002). Only after the swelling of a woman’s clitoris subsides would she be able to leave the asylum. The treatments were nothing short of odd and wildly inhumane. They included induced vomiting, bloodletting, solitary confinement, separation from men, leeches, strait jackets, and, in extreme cases, clitoridectomies (Frick, 2002). In many ways we have evolved as a species to understand that treatments aforementioned are not correlated to the curing of Hypersexuality. In the scientific community, a general consensus of how the ‘disease’ is classified has not been reached, however, there are a number of theories and growing communities of nymphomaniacs seeking help, therefore, maintaining the notion that further research into this topic is needed. **Lacking a General Consensus ** According to the American Psychiatric Association, a person is considered to display symptoms of Hypersexuality if **“**** there is clinically significant personal distress or impairment in social, occupational or other important areas of functioning associated with the frequency and intensity of these sexual fantasies, urges, and behavior” (2010). The American Psychiatric Association continues with their definition of Hypersexuality by stating that “ ** excessive  ** time is consumed by sexual fantasies and urges, and by planning for and engaging in sexual behavior… ** ** Repetitively engaging in these sexual fantasies, urges, and behavior in response to dysphoric mood states (e.g., anxiety, depression, boredom, irritability)… in response to stressful life events… [and] ** ** Repetitively engaging in sexual behavior while disregarding the risk for physical or emotional harm to self or others” (2010). Basically, it doesn’t seem like one has too much of a problem unless her impulses thoroughly affect her everyday life. In terms of societal norms, the man who spends his whole day inside masturbating to pornography would be seen as having hypersexual symptoms as opposed to the woman who spends part of her day masturbating. The distinction is a very fuzzy line and is the reason for the lacking of a general consensus because when comparing this disorder to various addictions, as many scholars do, it is hard to know when too much has gone too far. Of course, some instances, if correlated correctly, could easily show that using someone as an object of sexual promiscuity is neglecting the potential emotional or physical harm to others. Without thorough communication of wants and needs one risks the destruction of any romantic relationship. **  ** The Addiction Model ** ** As stated by Goleman, “ **Some types of excessive sexual activity have all the hallmarks of an addiction and can be treated in a fashion similar to other addictions, such as alcoholism and gambling, a growing number of sex therapists believe” (1984). Even though Goleman’s article was published in 1984, the points he makes are still very applicable to today; in some ways even more so now. With the proliferation of mainstream media and companies usage of copious amounts of mediums to sell, sell, sell, sex has become an object to be exploited. Whole generations of kids since about the 70s have lived through this era of sexually explicit media and could very easily begin to downplay the importance of the emotional side and significance of sex. As stated in the article //An Update on Sex in Magazine Advertising: 1983 to 2003//, “The emotion-evoking nature of sexual information is particularly adept at piercing consumers’ perceptual fields so that it gets noticed. Over time, however, sexual information must become more graphic and intense to evoke the same degree of attention and arousal as it did initially. Such a response is partially explained by the concept of habituation” (2004). So if we were to compare sex to a drug, the first time we see a sex ad is like watching our parents drink then we slowly become “okay” with the fact that they drink so they drink and party more, just like with the furthering of explicit sexual content on TV, and then finally when approached with an opportunity to drink ourselves we most likely will take the sip; that is the idea of habituation. With sex it is the same concept because after one has a taste of the type of sex they see on TV then they continue to experiment and eventually run the risk of becoming addicted. Of course, this is a simplified version of what many sexologists are calling sexual addiction, however, there is the undeniable fact that the symptoms of Hypersexuality run parallel to most addictive personalities and tendencies. “Dr. Masters and I were reading an article about treating drug addicts a year or so ago. At the time we were treating a group of men who had been arrested for incest. We suddenly realized that these incest offenders had all the signs of being addicts. They were addicted not to drugs but to sex” (Goleman, 1984). **Modern Day Treatments ** Unlike the treatments stated above in the history section, new treatments are beginning to make their way into mainstream psychiatric patient care as the disorder is becoming more widely known and accepted. Many scholars still discredit the ‘disorder’ and don’t bother to continue with research which causes there to be few treatments available. As stated by Groneman, “The development of medical specialties such as gynecology, neurology, and psychiatry over the course of the nineteenth century led to turf wars in which each specialty promoted its own physiological explanation and treatment for women's diseases. Yet nymphomania remained elusive… Neurological research found little organic evidence linking nymphomania to the brain” (2000). This is pretty much still the case because the furthering of research is needed to understand the disorder before formal medications or treatments can be designed. Thus far, the area of treatment that seems to be making the most headway is in therapy groups much like Alcoholics Anonymous. In fact, a sector of Alcoholics Anonymous began such groups as Sexaholics Anonymous and Sexual Addicts Anonymous to help people combat the demons that seem to drive them to compulsions of sexual desire that is either regretted afterwards or that leads to the self-destruction of their life (Goleman, 1984). Now, whether one has sex for desire, lust, love, and/or addiction one must always be safe and communicate!  Works Cited American Psychiatric Association (2010, Oct. 14). //Hypersexual Disorder.// Retrieved from http://www.dsm5.org/ProposedRevisions/Pages/proposedrevision.aspx?rid=415. Frick, K. (2002, May 18). //Women’s Mental Illness; A Response to Oppression.// Retrieved from http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~ulrich/femhist/madness.shtml#spinsters. Goleman, D. (1984, Oct. 16). //Some Sexual Behavior Viewed as an Addiction.// Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/1984/10/16/science/some-sexual-behavior-viewed-as-an-addiction.html?scp=2&sq=sex. Groneman, C. (2000). //Nymphomania: A History.// Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/books/first/g/groneman-nymphomania.html. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">Image One. (2002, May 18). Retrieved from http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~ulrich/femhist/madness.shtml#spinsters. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">Reichert, T., Carpenter, C. (2004). An Update on Sex in Magazine Advertising: 1983 to 2003. //Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly Vol. 81, No. 4.// Retrieved from https://compass.illinois.edu/webct/urw/lc5116011.tp0/cobaltMainFrame.dowebct.