Question about brain fog

Addiction causes brain damage which affects our thinking, feelings, and brain chemistry. It causes depression, anxiety, and chemical imbalances. It leads to poor decision making, isolation, irritability, and lack of clarity, focus, and awareness. Life feels dull and boring to an addict because they live a life of extremes.

A person can pmo to medicate this feeling. The rush of excitement chemicals can burn away the fog. It activates the fight or flight part if the brain. Pmo makes people feel alive. Pmo acts as an antidepressant or antianxiety drug.

During the first month if recovery the brain's chemistry starts to rebalance itself causing extreme discomfort. The brain experiences withdrawal symptoms that are real and uncomfortable. Some addicts rationalize edging, or looking at porn without M or O, but this inhibits recovery. This is also why the gradual reduction method does not work.

Lastly, addiction steals the person's best qualities. Recovery will involve him reclaiming his humanity. He will need to learn how to love, care, and be present again. Many SOs will notice the man they use to know coming back to the surface.

 

Your brain is a Corvette. Brain fog makes it a cavalier. There's not really anything a Corvette can do that a Cav can't, but it just isn't the same. Isn't as good. Isn't as powerful . Isn't as tuned. Isn't as fast. Isn't as efficient . All the intangibles that make a beautiful machine beautiful, compared to an ordinary one. The analogy isn't quite right, but I think it's in the ballpark.

 

GOOD MAN

 

If they stick around to find out.

 

Constant pmo caused the problem in the first place. A person will continue to experience it during his detox. It should clear within 30 days.

It varies. Some people learn to compensate. Some learn to mimic. Some become 'functional' addicts, like functional alcoholics who learn to manage harmful side effects. If he kept himself in a constant medicated state then he might not have this side effect. Or he may not have reached this level of addiction.

 

Yes, I do believe all PA's deal with brain fog in different ways.
I'm curious... does your partner struggle with ADD/ADHD?
This is what mine has. And it always seemed to me that he described his need for PMO as a way to clear his head and focus his energy.
So it makes sense the way he's explaining it, that he could have that or depression.

In his mind, PMO helps him focus.
And it just might.... for the duration that he's doing it.
As soon as he hits that next low.... that's when he needs it again. That's why it's an addiction.
So his mind is tricking him into thinking it's good for him.
Because it's dopamine being released in the brain, a pleasure chemical.
He is confusing true happiness/contentment with momentary pleasure.
The release that O provides is honestly great for mental health.
But it's better when with a partner. I hope he believes that.

 

has he tried to go a prolonged period of time with out doing it?
that sounds like withdrawl

 

That makes a lot of sense. And I've heard it a lot.
Jitters are a common side-effect at first when they stop PMO. Withdrawal, as @SpouseofPA just said. Better way of putting it, actually.

And both my partner and I have ADD (both undiagnosed though), we also both struggle with finishing books and things like that.
Is that the only thing he has a hard time focusing with?

 

Here are two articles that help us understand what happens in the brain when we become addicted and what happens when we try to stop.

https://www.yourbrainonporn.com/research-articles-and-abstracts
This link talks about how the brain becomes sensitized to porn, desensitized to normal pleasurable activities, the reduction of the prefrontal cortex, and malfunctioning of the reward systems in the brain.

https://www.yourbrainonporn.com/what-does-withdrawal-from-porn-look-like
This link talks about the behavior changes that happens during a detox and the chemicals that are out of balance during that time period.

 

Maybe. I don't know if there's a firm answer, but to my mind since it's possibly detrimental, and the brain fog is probably the first major symptom to clear up, a month or two of sex really isn't important enough to risk the potential negative outcome.