Anthony Wiener is a selfish man who is out of control in his online sexual behavior, but he is not a sex addict. There is no such thing.
Study after study show there is no such concept. The DSM that therapists use to diagnose mental health problems refused to include either sex addiction or hyper-sexuality as diagnoses, because there is insufficient research and theory to support such diagnoses.
You cannot be addicted to yourself. Sex is not a drug. It is part of us—not external to us. Some argue that the name of the problem does not matter, but this is untrue, because a twelve step treatment approach will not provide internal locus of control so a person can control her or his behavior.
Rehab in patient sex addiction centers depend on the nonexistent diagnosis to make lots of money. Anthony Weiner is in such a center now. Earlier it was Tiger Woods and a myriad of other celebrities. It is convenient to say you have an excuse because you are a sex addict, but none of this is accurate.
The real problem is that people like Wiener are not getting the help they need to get back into balance with sex. He and others who share his obsession and compulsion need cognitive behavior therapy, not a moralistic twelve step approach.
Twelve steps are not therapy. They are not a valid treatment approach, and they are useless when it comes to sex. The problem is they are the most visible approaches. This is changing. Studies and the media are combining to take a second look at sex addiction.
It is all about money. Inpatient centers charge $30,000 to $40,000 a month. These centers do not want to give up their cash cow. They are going to have to fold. There is a coordinated effort to expose these charlatans for their scam. It is all happening as I write this blog.
It means nothing to certify sex addiction when it does not exist! Certified Sex Addiction Therapists are everywhere, but make no mistake—they are scared because their futile approach is getting put under a microscope today. Social media and media are both exposing sex addiction as an ineffective and harmful approach.
Marriages fall apart while a partner (usually the husband) sits in sex addiction groups, goes to a center, or sees a sex addiction counselor. Many of these marriages could have been saved with a CBT therapist who does couples counseling, and who is certified by AASECT as a sex therapist.
Sex therapists who are AASECT certified are the best place to go for help. Sex addiction counselors are poorly trained, their approach does not work, and they have no skills to improve marital sex and a marriage in general.
I help get people back in balance with sex every day. I am successful. I get lots of clients who first went to sex addiction counselors and they were not helped. They are glad they found me.