Your Brain on Porn

This site is maintained by a group effort that includes men who have recovered from internet-porn related problems and a retired anatomy & physiology teacher. You can contact YBOP admins here, but you must first create an account. Please do not ask YBOP admins questions specific to your situation. YBOP does not diagnose or provide medical or sexual advice. See the Support Page and About This Site for help with your porn-related problems.

Quick FAQs:

1) Is this site religious?

• Nope. The site's founder is an atheist (as were his parents and grandparents). For more see this 2016 interview of Gary Wilson by Noah B. Church.

2) Does anyone make money from YBOP?

• Nope. YBOP accepts no ads and the proceeds from Gary Wilson's book go to charity. Gary Wilson has accepted no fees for speaking.
• Looking for a public speaker? (men who have recovered from porn-induced sexual dysfunctions)

3) What is the current state of the research on Internet porn addiction and porn's effects? 

• This page lists 39 neuroscience-based studies (MRI, fMRI, EEG, neuro-psychological, hormonal) providing strong support for the addiction model.
• This list contains 15 recent literature reviews & commentaries by some of the top neuroscientists in the world, supporting the porn addiction model.
• This page contains 27 studies linking porn use/sex addiction to sexual problems and lower arousal to sexual stimuli. The first 5 studies in the list demonstrate causation, as participants eliminated porn use and healed chronic sexual dysfunctions.
• Almost 60 studies link porn use to less sexual and relationship satisfaction.
• At least 30 studies reporting findings consistent with escalation of porn use (tolerance & morphing sexual/porn tastes), habituation to porn, and even withdrawal symptoms. 
• Over 55 studies link porn use to poorer mental-emotional health & poorer cognitive outcomes.
• Over 25 studies link porn use to "un-egalitarian attitudes" toward women.
• Many studies on adolescents report porn use is related to such factors as poorer academics, more sexist attitudes, more aggression, poorer health, poorer relationships, lower life satisfaction, viewing people as objects, increased sexual risk taking, less condom use, greater sexual violence, unexplained anxiety, greater sexual coercion, less sexual satisfaction, lower libido, greater permissive attitudes, and a whole lot more.
• See Questionable & Misleading Studies for highly publicized papers that are not what they claim to be or were misrepresented in the media.
• The beta version of the next edition of the world's most popular medical diagnostic manual, The International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11), contains a diagnosis suitable for diagnosing porn addiction: Compulsive Sexual Behavior Disorder.

4) Has Gary Wilson published in the peer-reviewed literature?

• In 2016 Gary Wilson published two peer-reviewed papers:
  1. Is Internet Pornography Causing Sexual Dysfunctions? A Review with Clinical Reports (2016).
  2. Eliminate Chronic Internet Pornography Use to Reveal Its Effects (2016).

5) Are there any studies that falsify the porn addiction model?

• Nope. Despite claims you may see in the press, there are not.

6) Do doctors and therapists recognize and treat porn-induced sexual dysfunctions?

• Yes. This page contains articles and videos with about 110 experts (urology professors, urologists, psychiatrists, psychologists, sexologists, MDs) who acknowledge and have successfully treated porn-induced ED and porn-induced loss of sexual desire.

7) Is YBOP for banning Internet porn?

• Nope.

8) Why was YBOP created?

• We created the site because we don’t like people suffering needlessly simply because they lack critical information for improving their circumstances themselves.