Obsession with Cyber Sex Might Be Linked to Depression

Australian experts found that cyber sex is one of the factors that can even cause depression. Are they right?

According to Australian experts, cyber sex isn’t as innocent as you might have thought.

When cyber sex is better than real sex

In the time dictated by the increasing tempo of life, in addition to all obligations, people can hardly find time to seek romance and love that would offer them everything relationships offer. Sex as well. As sometimes sex is a complicated and difficult task, the Internet is a perfect solution for replacement. People simply avoid all the agonies of the first (and subsequent) dates by visiting porn sites and erotic chat rooms. Men aren’t burdened with erection or premature ejaculation in cyber sex because it’s solely about masturbation. Moreover, people turn into directors of their own porn movies in cyber sex. They click and visit the sites that they like and arouse them the most at that moment. Thus, men easily participate in sexual intercourse with two women in no time, while women can indulge in passionate sex based on their secret fantasies. In short, they become true voyeurs. First it’s a brunette and then a blonde. Sometimes they like asses and at other times they like big breasts. All the aforementioned is within their reach, or in other word, in reach of one single click of a mouse. Users of erotic websites stress that cyber sex has an advantage of being similar to sex with a stranger.

Pornography and various chat rooms on the Internet offer exactly what turns us on at that moment. (PhotoXpress)

You might become unsociable

A study conducted by Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, Australia, showed that regular users of erotic websites spend several hours a day in front of a computer for their haughty hobby, which can gradually lead to breaking off all social contacts and ruining their social life. The reason why the erotic hobby takes so much time is that users are mostly men in search for women who would participate in the aforementioned sexual practice and satisfy them quickly. According to users, you’re more likely to find a needle in a haystack than a woman who would be prepared to satisfy you in cyber sex. People included in the study were largely well educated individuals and when they were asked ‘When was the last time you had a serious relationship’, there was a long pause to think about it before replying to the question. Most people browse through erotic websites and chat rooms about 12 hours a week. In their hot sessions, they use cameras, videos, pictures and erotic e-mails. However, 65% of the people surveyed said that they wanted to meet the individual on the other side in person.

Thanks to arousal in front of a computer, you can neglect sexual relations in the real world. (PhotoXpress)

You might also become depressed

The study didn’t show only the effect on the social life of people. Among the 1,325 people surveyed, Marcus Sqirrell, an assistant at the aforementioned Australian university, also noticed a high rate of poor mental health of users. More than 27% of the people surveyed were classified to the category of medium to major depression and 30% felt deep anxiety and unexplained fear, while 35% of people showed signs of tension. A statistical analysis revealed that the increase in depression and tension in the people surveyed was directly proportional to the time they spent on the Internet. Therefore, those who spent more time browsing through erotic websites showed severer signs of depression.

This is somewhat similar to the question of the hen and the egg. Which came first? We can ask ourselves the same question while reading the data of the study. Is it possible that Australian researchers interpreted the study incorrectly and should have considered the other starting point? Therefore, the time spent browsing through porn websites doesn’t condition psychological well-being. It’s the other way round; psychological well-being conditions how much time people have cyber sex.