Porn Increases Social Anxiety

Social anxiety is a brain-based challenge—it’s a brain-based challenge. When the brain struggles with anxiety, it creates a significant amount of fast, high-energy waves called high beta. Interestingly, studies suggest that porn increases social anxiety, potentially exacerbating these brain struggles. When the brain is already struggling in general, social situations can spike this speed even more, making it seem impossible to communicate or interact with others in public.

Now, add porn to the mix. Research shows that porn use increases social anxiety, further dysregulating the brain. If you already feel anxious, entering social situations can intensify that high-speed brain activity, making it feel nearly impossible to connect with others.

Watch Dr. Leigh’s video on how Porn Increases Social Anxiety

How Social Anxiety Is Linked To Porn

Early exposure to porn—especially in childhood—can delay normal brain development. Over time, regular use starts to weaken the frontal lobe, which is the control center for decision-making, impulse control, and social behavior. This damage disrupts learning, socialization, and emotional growth.

As a result, navigating social situations becomes more difficult. The real world starts to feel awkward and uninviting. So instead of facing discomfort, many people retreat—and use porn as a coping tool. That habit reinforces the cycle: the brain continues to isolate, social skills go undeveloped, and porn becomes the crutch.

This is how the relationship between porn and social anxiety grows stronger with time.

What To Do About It?

To overcome social anxiety, you must remove porn from the equation. Without eliminating it, your brain stays stuck in high-speed mode. Once you remove the stimulus, your brain can begin to calm down and heal. You also need to build up your social skills. Start by preparing a strategy before you attend a social event. Walking in without a plan often leads to overwhelm and withdrawal.

Here is a blog on Dopamine Reset for Porn Addiction.

Your plan needs to include baby steps. It’s called scaffolding. You can’t just walk into a social situation with unrealistic expectations. Because porn increases social anxiety, the better plan is to dip your toe in and take baby steps towards success. One strategy you can use is to plan your own gathering. Plan it with your friends, the safe people in your world, and then invite one or two new people to practice those socialization skills with. Plan what you are going to talk about and what you’re going to do. This way, you can slowly work up to bigger interactions without jumping in all at once.

Then, after enough practice, you take it up a notch. If you’re going to go to a social event, immediately, but slowly work the entire event and introduce yourself to everyone, and ask them a question about themselves. Most of the time, you won’t have to do any of the talking. You’ll just need to listen to them talk about themselves. Continue asking them questions and practice active listening. When you’re done with that, go find your friends and stay in your safe zone for the rest of the night.