Your Brain on Porn

Publisher's Summary

Revised and updated in December 2017.

When high speed Internet became widely available a few years ago, growing numbers of people began to worry that their porn use was running out of control. Far from preparing them for fulfilling relationships, viewing an endless stream of porn videos led to unexpected symptoms. Perhaps most surprisingly, for the first time in history erectile dysfunction was becoming a significant problem for young men. This led to one of the largest informal experiments in the history of science. Tens of thousands of people have tried abstaining from sexually stimulating material in a process they call "rebooting." Many of them reported startling changes, from improved concentration and elevated mood to a greater capacity for real-life intimacy.

Gary Wilson has listened to the stories of those who have tried giving up Internet porn and related them to an account of how the reward system of the brain interacts with its environment. And now a growing body of research in neuroscience is confirming what these pioneers have discovered for themselves - Internet pornography can be seriously addictive and damaging.

In Your Brain on Porn Wilson provides a concise introduction to the phenomenon of Internet porn addiction that draws on both first-person accounts and the findings of cognitive neuroscience. In a voice that is generous and humane, he also offers advice for those who want to stop using Internet pornography. The publication of Your Brain on Porn is a landmark in our attempts to understand, and remain balanced in, a world where addiction is big business.

©2014, 2017 Gary Wilson (P)2017 Gary Wilson

Good info

Gives a lot of good insight as to what is and isn't healthy with porn. He at no point says you do or don't have a problem, you need to self assess.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Great work

it is very important book for me I believe that everybody should read it. Great work very detailed.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

No holds barred

I come from a conservative background, but only for last 25 years. Prior to that I spent the first part of my life up to age 21 living a seculare life.

I appreciate forwardness of the author and the candid testimonials. If you are working on recovery from a porn enduced life then you need to hear from all sides. If you are a conservative (Christian) background you need not act offended when you listen to this book. These are real people and their data being presented... so that you can see "porn knows no devisity" and it is waging havoc on many lives. Thank you for not holding back. ML

4 of 5 people found this review helpful

a must-read for all couple therapists!

I'm a couple and family therapist and consider my self very well read but this book contains information I've never heard before in any other school program, workshop or even books. It helped me correctly identify the problem and help a client save his marriage. I'm very sure that without the knowledge provided in this book I would, as all his previous mental health professionals, have looked for history of trauma and misdiagnosed him with attachment disorder, depression and social anxiety. We could have spent months talking about his relationship with his mother. He is very lucky I happened to find this book and I am now recommending it to all my students and colleagues.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

A must read in this day and age

This is one seriously scary, yet scientifically sound attempt to reveal and explain how internet porn influences and even rewires the brain. Anyone dealing with youth or other sexual beings who are also avid users of the internet (i.e. the most of us in developed countries) should seriously consider reading this book.

3 of 4 people found this review helpful

too many testimonials...

the content of the book was good, it really helped me understand how watching porn changes the brain. I could have done without all the testimonials though. it seemed like they were never ending then I lost my thought about the ACTUAL content.

4 of 7 people found this review helpful

Very powerful.

A very interesting book on this topic and on how the brain can be affected by new technologies as simple as high speed internet connection. Information that everyone should be aware of.

informative

was very interesting, quite captivating the way it's so down to earth in how each scenario is described in relation to the science.

super informational

just listening to what I had to do to quit stressed me out sad face.

Ahead of it's time

A very informative aid for those on a path free from porn or those who wish to learn more of the effects of pornography on the mind.

Very enlightening

Many more books like this are needed that speak about this topic of the harms of pornogprahy, especially from an unbiased scientific point of view.

The book only states the facts and evidence and clearly displays how pornogprahy is a major issue that will have massive negative implications for a large portion of society who consume it and are addicted to it.

4 of 6 people found this review helpful

Are You Addict? This will help you to quit!

Stories of real people who struggle with this addiction proves thats you're not alone in rebooting journey. It helps me during my rebooting to stay motivated and convinced that Porn although tough opponent - Can be beaten!
Wish You all to Fight It and Get Free! cuz Life its much better without Porn. Peace!

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Probably could have been summed up in 45mins

I did know anything about the Your Brain on Porn website going into this, but I wasn't expecting such clinical information with heavy leaning on testmonies from people who had suffered from porn addiction and are now turning their lives around by forgoing internet porn and masturbation.

Most of the testemonies provided are largely the same in content, while the author's information, while new and fairly informative, emphasises the same points and concepts.

The essence of the book could have been distilled down to under and hour and still provided the same information and sentiment.

Insightful and Enlightened

Great book that untangles the very complex web of Internet Porn.

It's no secret were moving at a faster pace than we can evolve so it's no surprise to hear about any issues with tech.

This book is a high-level overview with some basic advice and quick run of the statistics without getting bogged down.
A must read for everyone!

Everyone take note

This is a good book.

The only criticism was in the presentation - it could have benefited with a different narrator when quoting the multitude of useful testimonials.

I don't watch porn now, but it hasn't always been that way -- and the 2012 Ted Talk (The Great Porn Experiment) by the same guy was one of the reasons I made that decision to stop -- not morality or politics, but science and common sense.

Of course, I do think there are moral reasons for avoiding pornography, but there are so many grey areas and "what ifs" in the moral argument that they're not really enough on their own -- they were never enough for me.

This book covers the mental health aspects, it gives a good explanation on what happens to the brain when regularly engaging with porn, especially high speed Internet porn, and talks about the potential and actual long term damage that happens as a result. Damage to ourselves, our personal potential, and to our relationships.

Most importantly, it offers simple advice to anyone wishing to quit, with information on what to expect through the various stages after making that decision, including the long term benefits.

Abstaining from porn should really be the default setting for humanity, but in today's society it really isn't -- and I promise the benefits of getting back to a pre-porn state of mind are an absolute positive.

Please consume this book.