In this video, Dr. Trish Leigh discusses the role of self-esteem and masculinity and how they can be a driving force towards a pornography addiction. Then we’ll break down these concepts and think about their meanings. Like what is self-esteem and what is masculinity. So that you can think about them differently and leave pornography behind.

We often forget that our perceptions and beliefs are not all people’s perceptions and beliefs. When it comes to porn 2 main factors have been found in a new scientific study to be strong driving factors toward porn use. These 2 factors change the perception or the lens of porn for some men. The factors make it serve a bigger role or need for some men than for others. Those 2 factors are self-esteem and masculinity. 

What is your perception?

Your perception is your viewpoint and it’s your belief system. This viewpoint and belief system was developed from society and from your family. So let’s think outside of the box and creating a different perception than you did before.

What have new studies shown?

For some men, pornography gives their brain a massive dopamine rush but it also serves a very important role for other men. The role that pornography can play for some men is it makes them feel manly and masculine. Therefore, this study shows that role is created for most men with low self-esteem. Self-esteem is the feeling that you have about your own self-worth, so if you have lower self-esteem or self-respect we know that this contributes to a shame-based pornography cycle.

Where does self-esteem come from?

Most likely it came from your family and if there’s any type of abuse or neglect this can really wear down the self-esteem. For you to thrive in your porn brain reboot we need to build your self-esteem that’s going to be a major offensive move that we’re going to make. However, self-esteem is a mental construct we can change. So if your a person with low self-esteem and you talk negatively to yourself, we can change that because it’s just a perception.

What is masculinity?

It’s a social construct or an ideology meaning that society has a label of what it means to be a man. There are two main constructs that are proven to be important by the scientific study that I’m talking about. Number one is power over women and number two is emotional control or restraint. So power over women was seen as masculine and not sharing emotions was seen as being manly. Not sharing emotions is a product of families that weren’t able to share emotions. These are out-of-date social constructs of what’s labeled to be a man, but we’re going to make our own list.

More information 

If you’re interested in learning more, then click the video above. However, if you’re ready to quit porn for good and get the support you need, join Porn-Free Brain Forever Program. Here’s the link to my channel to watch more of my youtube videos.