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Long-Term Addiction to PMO May Contribute to Digestive Disorders (Gastritis, IBS, SIBO, Dysbiosis)

Discussion in 'Rebooting - Porn Addiction Recovery' started by brahmacarya, Apr 23, 2022.

Has NoFap improved your digestion?

  1. Yes

    75.8%
  2. No

    24.2%
  1. brahmacarya

    brahmacarya Fapstronaut

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    I've struggled with digestive issues for nearly 15 years now. Got addicted to PMO when I was 12 years old and couldn't get rid of it ever since. After 5-6 years of regular PMO I developed serious digestive issues (gastritis and IBS) along with numerous unusual symptoms (e.g., chronic acne, hair loss, multiple cavities, tooth loss, oral thrush, halitosis, weight loss, fatigue, brain fog, dark circles under eyes and etc). Around that time I also developed a chronic tonsillitis which did not respond to any treatments and forced me to remove my tonsils (super painful and horrible experience).

    Something was very wrong with me but I was unable to put a finger on it. For a long time I suspected an infection (fungi, bacteria or both) from an ex-girlfriend but I have had numerous blood and stool tests since then. No STDs, parasites, pathogenic microbes, disorders, normal gastroscopy, colonoscopy and etc. I was perfectly healthy on paper. Yet I felt like I was in a body of a 70 years old person. It didn't make any sense. How could I be feeling so unhealthy and experience so many strange symptoms for no apparent reason?

    My digestive issues have progressively gotten worse. After another 5 years I developed a hydrogen SIBO (confirmed with a breath test). Loose bowel movements and excess flatulence after any food became a daily reality.

    Throughout these years I have tried every possible healing modality without success. Some of the things I have tried:
    • Broad-spectrum pharmaceutical antibiotics and antifungals
    • Herbal antibiotics, antifungals and biofilm disruptors
    • Digestive enzymes, betaine HCL and bitters, ox bile
    • Various supplements
    • Probiotics. All kinds of expensive and potent probiotics from all around the world (trust me I've tried them all)
    • Fermented foods (e.g., homemade milk and water kefirs)
    • Numerous diets (e.g., vegetarian, vegan, fruitarian, WFPB, FODMAP, carnivore, raw carnivore and etc)
    • Fasting (water and dry). Sometimes I fasted for 5-7 days straight
    • Enemas (e.g., water, coffee, garlic, probiotic and etc)
    • Bacteriophages
    • FMT transplants (from multiple healthy donors)
    For a long time I subscribed to the germ theory and was convinced that I had disrupted my gut microbiome (low alpha diversity and/or missing microbes) and had a chronic intestinal dysbiosis. However, after having tried the above treatments for many years without any luck I gradually leaned towards the terrain theory.

    Recently I was thinking about my lifestyle and thought of something I could be doing wrong that compromised my gut health. My diet was fine for many years now (only natural, organic and whole foods), no alcohol, no smoking, normal sleep, normal stress levels and moderate exercise. Everything seemed to be fine and I was not doing anything crazy to make myself so unhealthy.

    Then it dawned on me, the only thing I did on a regular basis that could be considered a bad habit was PMO. What made me even more suspicious was that I got addicted just a few years prior to the onset of the initial symptoms (over 15 years ago). Then I recalled that once I had a successful NoPMO streak of 218 days and my digestive symptoms improved a lot but somehow I failed to connect the dots, relapsed and never managed to get back on the horse.

    I started searching the Reddit subs r/NoFap, r/Semenretention as well as this forum for any information that could confirm a potential link between long-term PMO addiction and digestive disorders. I was finding more and more evidence. Some people only suspected a connection, others noticed that their digestion always got worse after a relapse, while some were convinced it was the root cause, stopped PMO and "cured" their digestive issues within 2-14 months (on average).

    Then I decided to collect some of the most impressive stories and contact their authors. They confirmed that there was indeed a causal link (at least in their case) and abstaining from PMO has resolved their digestive issues. This motivated me to continue my research and gradually I found numerous studies, books and articles indicating that long-term, habitual PMO and hypersexuality could lead to various detrimental consequences for health (imbalance of neurotransmitters: dopamine and serotonin; hormones: testosterone and prolactin; androgen receptors, overstimulation of the nervous system, impair stomach and intestinal motility).

    I immediately started a NoFap streak and lo and behold after two weeks my digestive symptoms have noticeably improved. My bowel movements are more solid, regular and have better color. I am determined to continue SR indefinitely and hoping for my digestive issues to resolve completely within 6-12 months.

    Hope my experience will help someone else make a connection between their PMO addiction and digestive health.

    If you've had a similar experience, please share it.
     
    Last edited: Nov 19, 2023
  2. Toni7

    Toni7 Fapstronaut

    You still have symptoms but it is better? On witch day are you?
    Did you ever try to eat just meat?
     
    Onan the Barbarian likes this.
  3. brahmacarya

    brahmacarya Fapstronaut

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    Still experiencing some symptoms but they have improved a lot in the past 14 days of NoPMO.

    Yes, I have tried the carnivore and even raw carnivore diets which I mentioned in my post above. Not a good idea to do such extreme diets long-term.

    Such health issues are not caused by foods as long as you eat natural, organic and whole foods. Chances are something is wrong with your body.
     
    Last edited: Oct 5, 2022
    Ammar2, Asgardian36 and Toni7 like this.
  4. Toni7

    Toni7 Fapstronaut

    Keep up. Surly being an addict to this can destroy your body and brain and hormons. It will take time to recover.
     
    Ammar2 and brahmacarya like this.
  5. brahmacarya

    brahmacarya Fapstronaut

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    Hi @Mr. Kruger, your posts and comments have helped me make a connection between my addiction to PMO and horrible digestive health. Thank you!

    How are you feeling these days? Are your digestive issues still in remission?
     
    Vikram369 and Mr. Kruger like this.
  6. OhWhenThe

    OhWhenThe Fapstronaut

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    I've also experienced the same, I posted this recently:

    People will think that I'm crazy but there is no doubt in my mind whatsoever that long-term PMO will result in all kinds of weird effects on the body.
     
  7. brahmacarya

    brahmacarya Fapstronaut

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    [​IMG]

    SPECT scan showing the brain damage caused by long-term PMO addiction (Dr. Lawrence V. Tucker, PLLC, Diplomate, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology):



    [​IMG]

    Long-term addiction to PMO:
    • Downregulates neurotransmitters (e.g., dopamine and serotonin) - 1, 2, 3, 4
    • Disrupts hormonal balance (e.g., testosterone, prolactin and adrenaline) - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
    • Decreases the volume of grey matter in the brain (prefrontal cortex) - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
    • Reduces the density of androgen receptors - 1, 2, 3, 4
    • Deteriorates mental health - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
    • Exhausts the central nervous system - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
    • Decreases gastric secretions and induces GI ulceration - 1, 2, 3
    • Disrupts gastrointestinal motility - 1, 2, 3, 4
    • Promotes insulin resistance - 1, 2, 3, 4
    • Leads to sexual dysfunction and decline in sperm counts - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
    The disposable soma theory and expensive germline hypothesis:

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Oct 16, 2022
  8. brahmacarya

    brahmacarya Fapstronaut

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    @OhWhenThe, thanks for sharing your experience. Can I learn more about it somewhere?

    Have you experienced any other digestive symptoms (e.g., bloating, excess flatulence and etc)?
     
    Slider8 likes this.
  9. sur1985

    sur1985 Fapstronaut

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    Very nice! Sometimes we have to really get some heave reactions in order to finally get rid of this horrible addiction. Very inspiring! Keep doing and trying your best!
     
    Slider8 and brahmacarya like this.
  10. Interesting, thanks for sharing. It seems like they really just don't know enough given the complexity of the microbiome. It's one thing to transplant from human into mice for IBD in particular but from what I understand two individuals who are healthy can have a very different profile. That recent study from Massachusetts General Hospital even mentioned "dark matter" that can't be identified.
     
    Dares Greeneye and brahmacarya like this.
  11. Master Builder

    Master Builder Fapstronaut

    Look up soaring eagle. He has a book about nofap with many articles. In it he describes what porn and masturbation does to your body from a TCM (traditional chinese medicine) viewpoint and how to overcome the symptoms (by abstaining and cultivating the health).

    When you understand TCM, all symptoms from excessive masturbation become very clear as to why you have them.

    Digestive issues is one of them
     
    Slider8, Assyrian and brahmacarya like this.
  12. Kierann

    Kierann Fapstronaut

    Originally I intended not to vote in the poll and write something like - man with all respect to your issues I've never noticed any correlation regarding my digestive health and NoFap lifestyle. And then it dawned on me :D Quite eyes- opening post now if you ask me. Good job indeed!
    I had troubles with my digestive system for many years and it somehow became my normal. I tried to supplement with expensive prebiotics and probiotics from time to time with limited success. But at that time I didn't really try that hard. Like I said, my weak digestive system became my new normal and it didn't really bother me that much because it didn't limit me and my life much.
    For some reason my troubles ceased to exist about two years ago which corresponds exactly with the time at which I adopted NoFap lifestyle. Now I have zero digestive problems and because I would like to keep it that way, I try to look after my guts and microbiome better. I never use antibiotics or painkillers anymore and I also try to buy only those kinds of foods without preservants because they have antibiotic effects ( for obvious reasons).
    So after reading your post and remembering my own story, I definitely think there is connection. When we screw up our hormones, we pretty much screw up everything. All the different functions of our body are interconnected and effecting each energy. And when we gamble with our sexual energy, the life force itself, many things go wrong and your digestive health is probably one of them. It is something new to consider but I feel like you are up to something here.
    I myself am curious how many people will confirm your idea.
    My digestive troubles were mainly - loose bowels, diarrhea, bloating, heartburn and bad breath.
    Thank You and keep up the good work :)
     
  13. Mr. Kruger

    Mr. Kruger Fapstronaut

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    I'm glad that my posts have helped you this much! My digestive issues are 100% better now. It took me almost three years to get to this point, but I was a severe PMO addict for two decades. No two addictions are the same, so don't compare your recovery timeline to mine too much. Also, try to avoid relapsing at all costs! Every time I relapsed, it would make my digestive issues and other withdrawal symptoms flare up again for one or two months. Relapsing is the worst thing you can do; it really sets back your progress.
     
    Last edited: Apr 26, 2022
  14. brahmacarya

    brahmacarya Fapstronaut

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    Greatly appreciate your feedback. I've read all of your posts and comments (literally). Helped me tremendously!

    No more bloating, excess flatulence and bad bowel movements? Don't you have to exclude any foods from your diet?
     
    Last edited: Apr 27, 2022
    Mr. Kruger likes this.
  15. Mr. Kruger

    Mr. Kruger Fapstronaut

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    Nope, my digestive system is functioning completely normally now. The only issue I'm still dealing with is sleep dysfunction, but that's gradually improving too.
     
    FREE72 and brahmacarya like this.
  16. Mr. Kruger

    Mr. Kruger Fapstronaut

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    Also, I forgot to mention that you can feel free to message me anytime you need to if you have any questions about anything or issues that you'd like to discuss. I know all too well what it's like to battle this demon, so I'm glad to help in any way that I can.
     
    FREE72 and brahmacarya like this.
  17. brahmacarya

    brahmacarya Fapstronaut

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    I am sure I will have some questions during my long recovery from this addiction. Will message you then. Appreciate your support.

    Thanks!
     
    Last edited: Oct 5, 2022
  18. Mr. Kruger

    Mr. Kruger Fapstronaut

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    Don't worry, none of this can kill you. Nobody has ever died from PMO addiction or PMO-addiction recovery.
     
    brahmacarya likes this.
  19. abouttime19

    abouttime19 Fapstronaut

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    I don't experience crazy symptoms but I do think I have a "weak" stomach. Everytime I travel or eat a different culture cuisine, my stomach gets really upset. I thought it was bc my stomach is not used to it, but everyone around me is always fine.

    Besides the stomach, i get pretty mental adverse effect. I study for like 10 mins and I'm like having an internal anxiety attack bc i just can't read anymore. if i don't do PMO for like 5 days, I can read for 2 hours without issues. Memory is severely hindered. Fatigue 24/7.

    PMO symptoms also happens even after Orgasm with a girlfriend.

    My brain is literally fried
     
    brahmacarya likes this.
  20. Icewarrior

    Icewarrior Fapstronaut

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    To give you even more healing power have you considered the Wim Hof Method ? It really works the abdominal muscles and lungs, and also energizes the whole body.
     
    FREE72 and brahmacarya like this.

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