Do I Have a Sex Addiction? Signs, Questions, and What to Do Next

When sexual behavior keeps returning despite attempts to change, it can be hard to know how to understand it. An online checklist cannot determine whether you have a disorder, but it can help you prepare questions for an assessment.

Questions worth exploring

• Do I repeatedly feel unable to control a pattern of behavior?
• Have attempts to change the pattern been unsuccessful?
• Is the behavior interfering with responsibilities, relationships, or wellbeing?
• Do I continue despite significant consequences?
• What am I hoping to change, and what support have I tried?

Frequency, sexual orientation, consensual interests, or number of partners do not by themselves establish illness. Secrecy, shame, or conflict can matter clinically, but they are not diagnostic on their own. Distress arising only from moral disapproval does not establish compulsive sexual behavior disorder.

About the terminology

People use “sex addiction,” “compulsive sexual behavior,” and other phrases in different ways. The ICD-11 recognizes compulsive sexual behaviour disorder as an impulse-control disorder. That is not the same as saying every concern about sexual behavior is an addiction.

What assessment considers

A clinician can explore control, impact, duration, context, and other possible contributors, including mood, substances, medications, or health concerns where relevant. Trauma or attachment experiences may be relevant for some people; they should not be assumed to be the cause for everyone.

A practical next step

Bring a description of the pattern, what you have tried, and what concerns you most. Treatment goals can be developed around your needs and values without requiring you to accept a label first.

If a partner has been affected by secrecy or broken agreements, their wellbeing deserves separate attention. Accountability for behavior remains with the person making those choices.

Clinical context: Compulsive sexual behaviour disorder in the ICD-11.