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What counts as porn?

Discussion in 'Rebooting - Porn Addiction Recovery' started by Quexx, Jun 20, 2018.

  1. Quexx

    Quexx Fapstronaut

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    Hi!

    I'm curious as to what you guys counts as the "P" in no PMO? Examples being; if you have a friend that is a girl on Instagram and she's on vacation and uploads a bikini image, does that count as P and should be avoided, regardless if it leads to MO or not?

    I'm mostly interested in this to figure out what it is that leads to my brain "corruption", if it's only hardcore porn, if it includes softcore porn or even regular non-nude images of women?

    Thanks!
     
    FX-05 likes this.
  2. I don't know the rules of this challenge 100% but if you look at the bikini pictures with perverted intents for a longer time it will probably give a similar effect to porn so I'd just try to avoid it. It's not like you lose the challenge if you see a girl in bikini though.
     
  3. Quexx

    Quexx Fapstronaut

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    Sounds reasonable and logical! I assume that it's the overdose of dopamine that is harmful in the long term, regardless if that overdose comes from hardcore P or extended glaring (and fantasizing) of any woman you find attractive (no matter how dressed she is)?
     
    idek what name likes this.
  4. yeah I think the same :) let's try and beat this damn addiction!!!
     
    Enid, FX-05 and Quexx like this.
  5. Mr. 180

    Mr. 180 Fapstronaut

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    Bikini or no, if you MO to it you're using the same pathways in your brain that you want to eliminate. Obviously you can't control what your friend uploads, but you can control what you do with it. Not to mention you risk opening Pandora's box, in a sense - I used to look at bikinis and think "Well, it's not real P," but that led me to the worst stretch of PMO in my life.
    I would just be very careful. If you really want to reset, just avoid as many things that may trigger a relapse as you can.
     
  6. Quexx

    Quexx Fapstronaut

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    Of course, I wasn't talking about MO, I was talking about those pictures just happen to be in your Instagram flow and you either scroll past them or stay a while and look at them (not glaring, not sexually, just regular look).

    MOing to any pictures and/or videos, should count as the "P" IMO. Porn is obviously not a good thing but it's also the coolidge effect to think about, even if you're jacking off to non-porn pictures and/or videos. Therefore, the thing you want to cut out of your life, aside from the obvious; Porn, is also jacking off to pictures and/or videos online since in essence it will provide you with the same effect that porn has. High dopamine rushes, lowered dopamine receptors, high prolactin, low testosterone (on the chemical level) but also objectification of women and coolidge effect (on the psychological level).

    If I'm going to MO (I haven't had the urge yet), I will follow RSDMax (YouTube) advice; only fantasize in my head and no edging. Basically jack off to things in my head and don't stop when I'm about to cum.
     
    Last edited: Jun 21, 2018
  7. Yeah, Mr. 180 gets it; If Instagram pics are not P they are at best going to put you in danger of relapse. Don't overestimate yourself; Many times I have fallen due to that.
     
  8. Quexx

    Quexx Fapstronaut

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    Thanks for your input! Am I interpreting you correctly then that you completely go offline from both Instagram, Facebook and all other types of social media where possible edging pictures and/or videos might appear?
     
  9. Personally I'd say yes, unless you can find an alternative way around though I just meant not looking at pics of girls. haha

    I don't know much about Instagram but is there a way to stop the pics from appearing on your feed without unfriending/unfollowing/whater-you-do?
     
  10. Quexx

    Quexx Fapstronaut

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    Alright, so in your opinion then, you count any picture of a girl as porn? Obviously it's not porn-porn, but I mean the "P" in "PMO" which we should abstain from? :)

    I guess there's degrees of how hard you want to draw this line. If you're someone who can't watch any pictures of girls (even regular ones) while abstaining from PMO without getting urges to MO to those pictures (or worse; relapse to PMO), then obviously you should not risk it... but if you're just using Instagram to follow your friends and/or celebrities for updates on their lives and maybe even inspiration for things you might want to do or accomplish, then I think Instagram should be allowed and even if a girl in a bikini pops up in your feed because your friend happens to be on vacation, it shouldn't be counted as P (nor edging) nor should you abstain from it as long as you don't get any urges (or act on any urges). Do you think it should be counted as edging or even P?

    No sorry, it's designed so that you either follow them, or you don't. So if you want to continue to use Instagram (for instance), you have to unfollow everyone that MIGHT upload any pictures of a girl. That is, if even just looking at a picture of a girl in your Instagram feed is counted as P and therefore results in a "reset" (even if you don't MO or relapse). You can control much, but not everything, in regards to what you see, both online and "offline".

    For instance, I was walking to the gym the other day and happened to walk past a women's clothes store. Their billboard poster on the side of their store showed a woman in underwear. Does the fact that I saw it count as a reset in your opinion, even if I didn't get aroused, let alone got any urges from it? :)

    I appreciate the discussion! Discovering what others think is definitely helping me understanding what is "harmful" and what is not so thanks!
     
  11. I wouldn't count a bikini picture immediately as P unless I find it sensual, but I would immediately move on from and avoid it because I don't want to test fate. If I consciously savour it I become like Mr Hyde and am consumed by passion. It is very rare I pull out without some serious damage.

    When testing if something is P it works somewhat like this:

    Is X P?
    1. yes -> Now things go sour and I lose control.
    2. no -> Nothing happens or maybe I think "oh she looks pretty. cool".


    Output 2 is not worth the risk of 1 happening. Of course it is not all black and white but this is the general pattern.

    First and foremost my approach is nicely summarised by this quote from the apostle Paul to Timothy;
    So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.

    Or this proverb;
    Keep your way far from her, and do not go near the door of her house,
     
    Quexx likes this.
  12. Quexx

    Quexx Fapstronaut

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    Thanks man, this was very interesting!

    I suppose your "Is X P" works most of the time, like 98% of the time! :D

    The reason I created this thread was in fact to determine what type of content leads to outcome #1 "yes" :)

    In my case, I have a photography interest and I will sometimes linger on a specific picture in my Instagram feed simply because it's a beautiful picture (maybe it has a sunrise with some nice looking clouds providing a cool effect) and it just so happens to have a woman in it as well. So it's not that I stare at the woman in the picture and become aroused, I admire the picture as a whole, you know?

    This might be a very tight rope to walk though as it could lead to relapse.. but as of yet, I have not had a single urge for porn from viewing those pictures, nor have I had any urges to masturbate while viewing those pictures.
     
  13. Yeah... you'll have to work that one out yourself.

    Just a side note, I wouldn't try to narrow down exactly what will cause outcome 1. since my brain will use any emotional thinking it can to justify itself and is always looking for loop holes. For that matter I am currently breaking an addiction to what was a P-substitute that I fell into after a brilliant streak, so watch out! Sometimes it is only once I have ejaculated that I realise I am dealing with P.
     
    Quexx likes this.
  14. Tayaa

    Tayaa Fapstronaut

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    Rebooting the brain requires a long term rest. No kinky stuff. No temptive images. Avoid anything that can arouse or excite your genital parts. Dn't fool urslf by sayin' on it s just a pic no mor no less.. No it dzn t work ths way.. U should abandon completely th whol fuckin sexy stuff''' if u want a whol fuckin recovert
     
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  15. Quexx

    Quexx Fapstronaut

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    Definitely. Like I said, it's a slippery slope. Thanks for sharing your experiences! Definitely exercise caution!

    Cheers mate. I assume you also go completely offline from all social media? :)
     
    Tayaa likes this.
  16. MasterRoshi

    MasterRoshi Fapstronaut

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    Yup it’s all about intentions.

    I’ve seen a few tv shows with nudity, it’s not porn cuz I didn’t seek it out. If I paused it rewound it and watched again or screen captured it, it would be porn.

    Same applies to non nude sexy stuff in the Internet. For example some of those lame YouTube video where there’s a bunch of badass people compilation and then they throw in a random slimition hot chick in the middle of it in skimpy cloths. Not a relapse, not porn. But if I pause, or start watching videos only for those girl segments and seek them out cuz of the thumbnails, then it is porn, for me.
     
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  17. Quexx

    Quexx Fapstronaut

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    Thanks mate. This is kind of exactly what I had thought! "It's the tought that counts" applies very heavily in this case.

    There is of course the arousal aspect of it. If that TV show with nudity (even if you didn't seek it out so it's not a relapse yet) makes you horny and/or aroused, and that causes you to relapse by either jacking off or seeking out real porn, that's of course bad and maybe in those cases it's a good idea to not expose yourself to those kind of risky situations. Temptations is a tricky thing - but if you got a strong mind and don't fall for those things easily, watching that TV show should be totally fine! :)
     
    Enid likes this.
  18. I'd agree with others here. E.g. I watch Game of Thrones with my girlfriend and sometimes there are nude scenes and such but it doesn't feel the same. I don't watch that with any bad intention, it's a good series that I simply enjoy watching for other reasons and I'm safe watching it together with my girlfriend.
    However, If were to be watching a twerk video or some insta-model online, chances are it happens with other intentions and it's somehow to "get me off" a bit. That's why twerk videos count as porn for me too.
     
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  19. vitatertot

    vitatertot Fapstronaut

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    I'd say similar, but without the fantasizing. You may not be able to yet, but I've found that as you progress through your reboot, you'll get to the point where (usually past day 7, but definitely past day 20ish) your boners are strong enough that you literally don't have to fantasize at all, you can just get it off in like 30 seconds. If you're going to, AND I DON'T SUGGEST YOU DO, but if for some reason you have to, don't make any conscious mental effort to fantasize, just get it off ONCE and be done with it. Doing it multiple times will compound the relapse effects
     
    Quexx likes this.
  20. MasterRoshi

    MasterRoshi Fapstronaut

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    Exactly! I don’t feel the same when a nude scene comes on So there isn’t a risk of itbtriggering me, really. At least so far. It’s so weird how if my intentions are pure and I’m living My life with pure honesty, then I seem to be safe from these things, so far.
     
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