Desensitization

You have what we call "PAWS" (Post acute withdrawal symptoms) are a lot of symptoms that are caused when you leave porn
https://forum.nofap.com/index.php?threads/p-a-w-s-what-are-they-cure-duration.231859/

The cure for this is : No PMO for at least +90days.
And then you should wait untill PAWS are gone.

Paws Duration: 6 to 24 months in general

(PAWS duration depends on how much Severe your Porn Addiction was , and how much fantasies you have developed through-out PORN.)

In general +90Days, and then you should wait from 6 to 24 months.


PAWS Symptoms:


The sudden abandonment of the PMO naturally triggers withdrawal symptoms, these can be violent: - Great Depression - Anxiety - Nervousness - Difficulty thinking clearly - Loss of intellectual faculties - Tremor - Nightmares - Headache - Loss of appetite - A lot of sweating - Inability to feel pleasure - Severe insomnia or on the contrary hypersomnia - Explosive temperament - Having the impression of having a severe flu - Feeling a metallic taste in the mouth - Weight loss - Cramps - Agitation- Generalized malaise- Aggression, explosive temperament- Acne- Great fatigue (lethargy) - Great loss of motivation- Exaggerated suspicion- Libido difficult to control- Diarrhea- Crying for no reason- Change in heartbeat- Disorientation- Sudden despair
- Complete loss of libido - Feelings of guilt

 

24 months? damn that's scary I hope it doesn't last that much for me

 

I also started with prone masturbation at a young age. After 18 months of retention I have finally regained sensitivity although I still have other lingering effects from PAWS.

 

which effects?

 

Some of the other side effects that had diminished came back with a vengeance once my libido woke up. Specifically fatigue, headaches, brain fog, back acne, and sleep apnea. I don't see sleep apnea on the list but I had it for the first year or so.

 

I wouldn't really believe the whole 18-24 months time period since these people most likely had no rewiring experience and just went cold turkey expecting something to magically happen one day without giving it a little push. The problem with nofap is that after a while people get so caught up in the "cultist" side of things, that they believe pure semen retention and refusal of sexual release will magically heal them by itself, without any form of rewiring the brain to experience sexual release in a realistic and natural kind of way. You have to unwire your brains link of sexual release with porn/death grip/ extreme shit, and rewire your sexual release to natural touch, gentle touch, realistic fantasy, built up scenarios that aren't instantly gratifying. You will heal much quicker if you actively try and rewire then if you just wait months/years on end trying to maintain semen retention.

Because what happens when you're 14 months deep into semen retention and you suddenly release and you think you've failed nofap? You'll suddenly feel as if the last 14 months was a failure and further link sexual release with negativity. And if you continue going, then you will continue to reinforce the idea that no sexual release is good, which will further weaken your sex drive and enhance your "flatline". Flatlines are real, but they aren't 24 months. Don't get sucked into the cult, recovery PROPERLY!

 

@iwontfail67 well said! That is the missing step for many people on here. Like you say, other self-improvements and new perspectives need to accompany the retention and abstinence. Or spiritual growth to put it another way.

Sure sex addiction has probably been in existence for centuries, but addiction to virtual/artificial extreme Porn definitely was not. As such, you need to try to repress the old negative habits, and replace with appreciation for simpler aesthetics and sensations. Stimulate the imagination if you do ended up fapping - that's predominantly what our ancestors used to stimulate sexual arousal

 

Quitting porn is the most important thing to do, and the second is rewiring desire and sexual response to natural and real thoughts and experiences. You wonder why these so called "2 year flatlines" happen, even 3-6 month flatlines. They happen because you're literally telling your brain sexual release or arousal is bad, so it shuts down. Now i'm not against a small amount of abstinence. A couple weeks after a relapse can be good for you, but gradually re learning to feel sexual stimulation in a porn-free, realistic way will speed up recovery 1000%.

People need to realise that these insanely long flatlines are only happening because you aren't giving your brain a reason to rewire, so your sexual desires literally shut down.

 

You like to jack off a lot I'm assuming

 

Clearly you don't understand how recovery works if that's your response. To answer your question, No I don't. I may do it once every couple weeks to rewire my sexual response to natural touch/thoughts. But i'm not deluded enough to believe that months/years of semen retention magically solves all your problems either. Don't embarrass yourself champion. But hey If thats what you want to do then by all means, keep at it!

Id rather actively rewire my sexual desire moderately than cut it out all together, "relapse" with masturbation at day 487 and then hate myself for "failing"...(which further strengthens the link between sexual release and negative feelings)

 

Rewiring is important to rewire your brain. Rewiring includes anything that trains your sexual response to link with real scenarios or real stimulation. If real sex is unavailable for you, try infrequently masturbating with a fleshlight. Discipline yourself to use it infrequently, and ONLY as a means of rewiring sexual stimulation, and removing the link between your hands and your dick. It might be expensive, but ask yourself, is it worth the money if it will probably help you recover quicker? But, its up to you to make sure that it does not become a new tool for instant gratification sexual release. Make it as realistic as possible. As long as you continue quitting porn and removing that link between porn and your sexual release, you will constantly continue to heal and rewire at the same time.

 

Even @Starfinder89 would agree with the rewiring logic. He has even written a comprehensive analysis on neuronal rewiring.

But I am against masturbation or fleshlights. As they don't activate all those senses when you are with a woman. Smell, touch, sound, visual. You don't produce the same chemicals as with a partner when you are doing it yourself.

 

That is true, but its better than allowing your sexual response to shut down and hibernate. And its definitely better than going back to masturbation with the hand. It should be an option for people to get themselves comfortable with hands free sexual release to boost their confidence that they don't need their hands to feel sexual response.

 

Well, I do agree on this point.
And regarding long term abstinence. For people who have been pmo'ing for a decade or multiple decades. Their brain chemistry would be fucked. And for an addicts brain to reach homeostasis requires 14 months(alcohol addicition)sometimes even less.

So for ppl who were only pmo'ing say under 3 years. It might work as u suggest to jus abstain for few months maybe under 6months and start rewiring. But for long term addicts especially with PIED, PE or DE. I believe and it is only my theory that a 12 month abstinence ±2 months is definitely required for the brain to heal. After which you can start introducing fleshlights or having sex and start to rewire and train you brain for actual sexual stimulus.

 

It doesn't specifically have to be 12 months of flawless abstinence. Many people in this forum would go 11 months and 20 days and relapse, and think that they now have to go another 12 months. Or go 80 days and fail and think that theyve lost all their progress. So personally I believe the simple fact that is, If you quit porn and the porn habits that you have created (death grip, multiple quick MO's per day, reliant on visual stimulation) and truly never go back to it, you're always moving forward with recovery, and sexual response rewiring can be implemented much sooner if it done infrequently and properly. 12 months of pure abstinence really just seems like a bit of wasted time. I can understand 3 months, I myself did 2 and a half months twice about a year ago, but 12 months all in one go just seems like you're waiting for something to magically happen that, probably never will by itself. And that causes real stress in people that believe that their sexuality has suddenly died.

 

Let's say an alcoholic who is abstaining. Do you think having a pint after a year would help him with his abstinence. Or even jus a sniff of alcohol?
By relapsing you are still rekindling and keepin intact the pmo neural pathways.
Even with a single relapse you are setting yourself back. But not completely to the point of start of recovery.
I understand what you are saying, even I did not have a clean streak in the first 5 months. Though I did not relapse to porn. I was substituting with video chat and relapsed once or twice every month in the first 5 months. But I kept trucking, removing all these behaviours.
Now I am 1 year porn free and 7.5 months PMO free without any substitues or peeking.
And I am aiming for another 7 months.
And I am not expecting any miracle to happen at that point. Like having raging boners or having my libdio back automatically.
Jus that I want to give my brain some healing time. From all the orgasms over the years. Which has fucked up my brain chemistry.
After that point, I would like to introduce orgasms in a healthy way.

These are two examples. One is cold turkey complete abstinence. And the other one is not.

https://forum.nofap.com/index.php?t...ccesfull-sex-with-delayed-ejaculation.287452/

https://forum.nofap.com/index.php?threads/over-400-days-pied-cured.309765/

 

What i'm trying to say is that by abstaining from sexual stimulation for multiple months/years does is create that link between sexual release and failure/negativity. So flatlines last for months/years because your brain starts to believe that ALL sexual release is bad and should be linked with failure. Simply put it, your brain chemistry is fucked because you orgasmed to porn. Gradually reintroducing orgasms to normal, natural things removes that link between sexual release and porn, and starts rewiring the link between sexual release and normality, actual real pleasure.

After 7 months you really should be "cured". Your brain just needs a helping hand to remind it that sexual release isn't actually something that should be associated with failure or porn. Honestly, I think if you tried to maybe release once every couple weeks and really focus on rewiring, your libido will rewire much quicker, and you might not have to wait an extra 7 months before this is behind you. Just a thought, but you know yourself best so do whatever you think will help you recover, since this entire situation is primarily mental anyway.