77: One Year of Porn Addiction Withdrawals | What to Expect During Your First Year After Quitting & How to Stay Sober

I recently had someone reach out to me directly to ask about porn
addiction withdrawal—what it really feels like, what challenges
come up, and how to get through it. Their question instantly took
me back to the beginning of my own porn addiction recovery
journey.


When I was six months sober, it was one of the most beautiful yet
difficult times of my life. I was learning so much about myself.
But I was also facing challenges I never expected.


You might have heard people describe withdrawing from porn as
mild—a process that only lasts days or weeks. But I’ll be honest,
that hasn’t been my experience, nor the experience of the clients
in my program or the people I’ve volunteered with. For most of
us, porn addiction withdrawal is a longer, more complex
process.
Why Does Porn Addiction Withdrawal Feel So Hard?


First, let’s be clear: You’re not crazy if you feel like quitting
porn is a battle. Pornography is highly addictive—some studies
suggest it’s as addictive, if not more, than cocaine. It hijacks
your brain’s reward system, creating a dopamine rush that can
feel impossible to resist.


Here’s the kicker: withdrawal from porn mimics some of the same
symptoms of porn addiction itself. Why? Because using porn spikes
dopamine to extremely high levels, which damages your brain and
inhibits its capacity to produce its own dopamine in the short
and long-term. To cope with this, you go back to porn again and
again to get that “hit”. But when you quit, your brain is
suddenly deprived of these dopamine spikes altogether, and this
leaves you feeling unmotivated, unfocused, and disconnected from
others. 



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