MSI Press Blog

excerpt --  Francesca Palazzolo, Researcher, Sydney The Coronavirus pandemic has changed the world we live in. Since city-after-city in country-after-country began to introduce strict social-distancing laws, including stay-at-home directives, most of us have been stuck at home whether we like it or not. One concern attached to this global pandemic is Internet pornography use. Already, prior to the pandemic, the prevalence of Internet porn use was incredibly high. Pornhub, one of the most famous tube sites boasted 42 billion hits in 2019 alone, up from 33.5 billion in 2018. And, in a stroke of publicity genius on March 24, 2020, Pornhub announced it would make its premium offering free for 30 days to help “flatten the curve” of the virus spread. Following this announcement, usage spiked across the world with Italy’s use increasing 61% after the announcement. However, prior to this broadcast, traffic was up anyhow, according to early research on the impact of the COVID-19 pandem

Joshua Shea, author of MSI published book, He's a Porn Addict...Now What? seemingly had it all. A loving wife, two children, and a supportive extended family. In 2010, after nearly fifteen years working of his way up the journalism ladder, he launched a lifestyle magazine in his hometown. Within a year, he was one of the founders of Central Maine’s largest film festival and had won a seat on the City Council in Auburn, Maine. Accolades, including receiving the Key to the City and being called one of the “Next 10 People Shaping Maine’s Economy” by a state newspaper followed. While the public got one picture of Joshua, behind closed doors, his longtime mental health and addiction issues were festering. A workaholic by nature, he actively ignored the red flags surrounding his long-existing pornography and alcohol problems. Finding it easier to lose himself in a bottle of tequila and adult websites, his relationships with his family, colleagues, and f

  excerpt from He's a Porn Addict...Now What? (Overbay and Shea) -  Can a guy really look at pictures and images without comparing them to the person he is with?   Tony, the mental health professional:  I know from working with enough addicts that the typical reason someone is addicted to pornography is that it’s a coping mechanism for the parts of their life that they aren't satisfied with and it becomes an addiction they turn to again and again despite the isolation and shame. The pictures in the magazines and the images that they're watching in the videos are an unhealthy escape. But unfortunately, even when they aren’t isolated and are with their wives, they are still preoccupied with the fantasy imagery. A lot of the clients I work with admit they think of pornography when they are intimate with their wives. For young men, the growing rates of erectile dysfunction because of pornography is staggering. They are now growing up with such an unhealthy diet of porn and pic

  How do I know if he’s actually an addict?   Tony, the mental health professional   To be clear, until recently, there wasn’t anything in either the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) or the World Health Organization’s (WHO) International Classification of Diseases (ICD) that talked about sexual addiction or pornography addiction. Recently, the WHO updated the ICD to include Compulsive Sexual Behavior Disorder (CSBD) as a mental health condition. While this designation doesn't exactly meet the standard for addiction, it is definitely the strongest statement made by a body of experts in the field of sexual mental health.   Let me share a very 30,000-foot view of what is happening to the brain when viewing pornography.  When a man watches porn, his brain releases the feel-good drug, dopamine. There is some fascinating research around what is called “The Coolidge Effect.” The idea is that a male will mate with

  This excerpt comes from He's a Porn Addict...Now What? (Overbay and Shea) How did he manage to conceal it all so well and deceive me for such a long time?   Tony, the mental health professional: You may have just found out, but more than likely there have been years of this pattern of behavior on his part that have led to either his disclosure or your discovery, and during these years there has undoubtedly been a tremendous amount of guilt and shame on his part. Guilt can be a good emotion, because it can cause someone to evaluate a situation and motivate them to do something different. But when shame kicks in, that’s the voice that tells you, “You’re a horrible person and you’ll never overcome this. People are going to know you’re a fraud, or that you’re disgusting if they ever find out about this.” Pornography is the type of addiction that for most individuals is laced with guilt and shame, evolving into an addiction fueled by isolation because they don’t want anyone to

  Joshua Shea, MSI Press author of  Porn and the Pandemic  and co-author of He's a Porn Addict...Now What?  and porn addiction and betrayal trauma coach, was interviewed on HBCU Lounge Network  about "The Dark Secrets of Porn."  Listen to it  HERE . For more posts about Joshua and his books, click  HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC monthly newsletter (recent releases, sales/discounts, awards, reviews, Amazon top 100 list, author advice, and more -- stay up to date) Follow MSI Press on  Twitter ,  Face Book , and  Instagram .   Interested in publishing with MSI Press LLC? Check out information on  how to submit a proposal . Planning on self-publishing and don't know where to start? Our  author au pair  services will mentor you through the process. Interested in receiving a free copy of this or any MSI Press LLC book  in exchange for  reviewing  a current or forthcoming MSI Press LLC book? Contact editor@msipress.com. Want an  author-signed copy  of this book? Purcha

  Oops! We missed it, but it is still worth a listen. For sure! Check out " Another Look at Porn Addiction " with Deb Silber and MSI Press author, Joshua Shea ( He's a Porn Addict...Now What? and Porn and the Pandemic ) on Breakthrough from the PBT Institute. Joshua is a sought-after podcast interviewee. In the next week or so, for those who have enjoyed this podcast, we will post a list of a number of Josh's other podcasts for your listening entertainmanet and erudition. Read posts about Joshua and his books HERE . Link fo review of He's a Porn Addict...Now What? and more book information HERE .                                  Sign up for the MSI Press LLC newsletter                           Follow MSI Press on  Twitter ,  Face Book , and  Instagram .

  Joshua Shea, MSI Press author of  Porn and the Pandemic  and co-author of  He's a Porn Addict...Now What?  and porn addiction and betrayal trauma coach, was interviewed for Conversations with Jacob on Spotify. The topic: Porn Addiction. Listen to it  HERE . For more posts about Joshua and his books, click  HERE . Sign up for the MSI Press LLC monthly newsletter (recent releases, sales/discounts, awards, reviews, Amazon top 100 list, author advice, and more -- stay up to date) Follow MSI Press on  Twitter ,  Face Book , and  Instagram .   Interested in publishing with MSI Press LLC? Check out information on  how to submit a proposal . Planning on self-publishing and don't know where to start? Our  author au pair  services will mentor you through the process. Interested in receiving a free copy of this or any MSI Press LLC book  in exchange for  reviewing  a current or forthcoming MSI Press LLC book? Contact editor@msipress.com. Want an  author-signed copy  of this book? Purcha