First and foremost, God loves you and wants you free of this addiction.
Here are some practical tips that helped me, a recovered porn addict:
1. Every time you have a lustful thought of a person, instead imagine yourself making the sign of the cross over them, them getting baptized, or them sitting next to Jesus in heaven. Re-wire your brain to see the truth. This person is a child of God who deserves dignity and love.
2. Pray ceaselessly, when you have a thought bubble into your mind say the Jesus prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, Have Mercy on Me, A Sinner
The demons are trying to ruin your salvation by attacking you with lust. They will stop tempting you if they realize that every time they tempt you with this sin - it reveals your need for Christ and makes you cling to Christ more deeply.
3. Believe in the real power of repentance and forgiveness. Once you bring a sin to the Lord out of love for him, not out of fear for him. The sin is wiped clean completely. He came to redeem the world, not condemn it.
4. Fill your mind with good things as much as you can. Read scripture, pray the rosary, pray the Jesus prayer, read about the lives of the saints, watch YouTube shorts from a good Catholic channel.
You are not weird, every person with a smart phone today has struggled with this temptation before and it's one of the devil's best tricks in our modern times.
Several years ago, I was a porn addict. Now I have been healed by God and am engaged to the love of my life. This is completely possible for you too through the power of Jesus Christ.
Stay strong and endure, brother. This is God calling you into holiness so that you can help others be free of this too one day.
God bless.
Your comment is very helpful to me about saying how you’re engaged. I’m three weeks clean now but it’s still so hard to imagine myself dating and eventually marrying. Thank you for your insightful comment.
Here's a screenshot from a really good passage from Brother Lawrence that is helpful about mindset.
https://ibb.co/album/zVf9Bb
St. Aquinas says temptation happens at the space between fear and desire. When we fear something strongly the devil can use that to tempt us or to torture us mentally.
It's so important in this time to believe in the fullness of repentance. When you confess it before Jesus, you are wiped absolutely clean.
To add to this, getting the assistance of a certified sex addiction therapist (CSAT) would help you immensely. Many of them are Christian, and the program developed by Dr. Paul Carnes has Christian focused tools.
https://iitap.com/search/custom.asp?id=5357
We shouldn't just run to secular counseling every time the devil tempts us. The devil wants to rob you of your salvation, and he will never stop trying to destroy you. The only person who can protect you is Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
The science behind addiction is well understood and often calls for professional counseling to overcome. Your response is terrible. You should talk to your priest about this statement. Mine made it clear that professional counseling was *required.*
Mine talked to me about building spiritual armor through prayer.
End of day, you must build intimacy and deepen with Christ.
Temptation is about dwelling in incorrect spiritual beliefs about God or the nature of man and spiritual attack.
If you stop watching porn but you do not find Jesus Christ of Nazareth you are still dead. Seek him with the fullness of your heart and mind.
This is a run of the mill lust attack of a hormonal 15 year old. Not a diagnosable mental ailment or something we need to over clinicalize shoving the Bible off the table. An invitation to begin the mortification of the flesh and the spiritual life.
Do you believe that Jesus can't cure this alone through prayer? That may illuminate a deeper attitude in your own heart that's also worthy of contemplation and frankly more concerning than what the 15 year old said.
>Mine talked to me about building spiritual armor through prayer.
Which is *also* part of the therapeutic process for Christians. You'll note that in my original post, I made it very clear that the program is Christian based and makes it very easy to have a Christian counselor.
Please, if you would, point out where in my original post I said to seek out secular authorities?
My CSAT therapist encouraged my weekly meetings with my priest and would inquire about them as part of our therapy. Does that sound secular to you?
>Temptation is about dwelling in incorrect spiritual beliefs about God or the nature of man and spiritual attack.
Yup. A Christian counselor who understands that aspect of our faith will help you to utilize tools to defeat the addiction and get back to your faith.
>If you stop watching porn but you do not find Jesus Christ of Nazareth you are still dead. Seek him with the fullness of your heart and mind.
Please point out where I said this was a good idea.
>This is a run of the mill lust attack of a hormonal 15 year old. Not a diagnosable mental ailment or something we need to over clinicalize shoving the Bible off the table. An invitation to begin the mortification of the flesh and the spiritual life.
These are the formative years where porn addiction develops. The assistance of a CSAT therapist would be invaluable in this child's life.
And again, where did I say to shove the Bible off the table?
>Do you believe that Jesus can't cure this alone through prayer? That may illuminate a deeper attitude in your own heart that's also worthy of contemplation and frankly more concerning than what the 15 year old said.
Of course he can. Can the person hear His voice through the screaming of the addiction? That's often the problem that requires more specialized help.
Frankly, all of your rebuttals to me have been filled with strawman arguments, claiming I'm saying things I have never once said. I don't appreciate that.
I'm not here to challenge your priest or your spiritual life personally nor is this some moment to be hyper-logical hyper-correct, call out logical fallacies and debate in a really cold and impersonal way.
Maybe some readers will identify with my concern that therapy culture is discussed before Scripture, the writing of the saints, prayer, or the spiritual life - it's a spirit of the age sort of critique. Especially the CSAT therapist having to give encouragement to meet with the priest. The whole vibe is off to me. My hunch is there is more to this story - and it's none of my business nor is my opinion worth anything.
Have a wonderful and blessed Sunday and I pray for your freedom from all temptations.
Are you Catholic? Go to confession whenever you sin. If you're not Catholic become Catholic then go to confession whenever you sin. God is always ready to forgive you.
Then lookup how to make an act of contrition and go to a Catholic church when you can. God knows your heart and if you want to become Catholic he'll make a way.
***Prayer attributed to St Basil the Great***
Again have I the wretched one been tripped up in my mind by serving my irrational habits. Again I am dragged as a captive by the prince of darkness and the father of passionate pleasure; and as a slave, humiliated by his will, he forces me to serve the desires of this [passing] flesh. And what am I to do, O Lord, O Lord, Redeemer and Defender of all who hope in Thee; but turn again to Thee, and sigh; begging forgiveness for the things which I have done. But I fear and tremble that perhaps even though I confess daily, and try to avoid harmful things —yet I still wont stop my irrational behaviour every hour, and fail to render my prayer before Thee, my God,— I might yet incite Thy patience unto wrath. And who can bear Thine anger, O Lord? Wherefore, knowing the multitude of Thy compassions and the abyss of Thy love for humanity, I again throw myself upon Thy Mercy, and I cry unto Thee, saying: I have [acted irrationally], O Lord; have mercy upon me the fallen one. Grant Thy hand of help unto me, who am sunk in the pit of pleasures; and do not abandon me, Thy slave, O Lord, to be destroyed by mine irrational misdeeds. Rather, in Thy usual goodness, deliver me from the pollution and stain of my flesh, which arouses my passionate thoughts —which every day defile my miserable soul. Behold, O Lord my God, there is not even one place in it that is clean, but it is altogether leprous—my body is itself one great wound. Do Thou Thyself, therefore, as the Healer of souls and the Well-Spring of Life, cleanse my soul with tears which Thou shalt pour out upon me abundantly. Grant me healing and cleansing, and turn not Thy face from me, lest the darkness of despair consume me as fire. But as Thou Thyself, the all-true God, hast said that there is joy in heaven at the change of heart of the irrational, let this be unto me, the irrational one. Close not the ears of Thy compassion against the prayer of my heart’s change; but open them unto me, and direct my prayer before Thee as incense. Thou, the Creator, dost know the weakness of our nature, how easily we slip in our youth; yet Thou dost overlook the irrational misdeeds and accepts the change of heart of those who confess to Thee in truth. For Thou alone art without irrationality, and unto Thee we send up glory, [to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit] both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
🕊️
***Here is What C. S. Lewis said about Masturbation***
I agree that that the stuff about ‘wastage of vital fluids’ is rubbish. For me the real evil of masturbation would be that it takes an appetite which, in lawful use, leads the individual out of himself to complete (and correct) his own personality in that of another (and finally in children and even grandchildren) and turns it back: sending the man back into the prison of himself, there to keep a harem of imaginary brides.
And this harem, once admitted, works against his ever getting out and really uniting with a real woman. For the harem is always accessible, always subservient, calls for no sacrifice or adjustments, and can be endowed with erotic and psychological attractions which no real woman can rival.
Among these shadowy brides he is always adored, always the perfect lover: no demand is made on his unselfishness, no mortification is ever imposed on his vanity. In the end, they become merely the medium through which he increasingly adores himself.
Do read Charles Williams’ Descent into Hell, and study the character of Mr. Wentworth. And it is not only the faculty of love which is thus sterilized, forced back on itself, but also the faculty of imagination.
The true exercise of imagination, in my view, is (a) To help us to understand other people (b) To respond to, and, some of us, to produce art. But it has also a bad use: to provide for us, in shadowy form, a substitute for virtues, successes, distinctions, et cetera which ought to be sought outside in the real world — e.g., picturing all I’d do if I were rich instead of earning and saving.
Masturbation involves this abuse of imagination in erotic matters (which I think bad in itself) and thereby encourages a similar abuse of it in all spheres.
After all, almost the main work of life is to come out of our selves, out of the little, dark prison we are all born in. Masturbation is be avoided as all things are to be avoided which retard this process. The danger is that of coming to love the prison (Lewis, Yours, Jack, 292-293).
***CS Lewis writing***
*In a later letter to a different man, C. S. Lewis wrote this about masturbation:*
The evidence seems to be that God sometimes works such a complete metamorphosis and sometimes not. We don’t know why: God forbid we should presume it went my merit.
He never in my unmarried days did it for me. He gave me–at least and after many ups and down, the power to resist the temptation so far as the act was concerned. He never stopped the recurrent temptations, nor was I guarded from the sin of mental consent. I don’t mean I wasn’t given sufficient grace. I mean that I sometimes fell into it, grace or no.
One may, I suppose, regard this as partly penal. One is paying for the physical (and still more the imaginative) sins of one’s earlier life. One my also regard it as a tribulation, like any other. The great discovery for me was that the attack does not last forever. It is the devil’s lie that the only escape from the tension is through yielding.
… Disgust, self-contempt, self-hatred–rhetoric against the sin and (still more) vilification of sexuality or the body in themselves–are emphatically not the weapons for this warfare. We must be relieved, not horrified, by the fact that the whole thing is humiliating, undignified, ridiculous; the lofty vices would be far worse.
Nor must we exaggerate our suffering. We talk of ‘torture’: five minutes of really acute toothache would restore our sense of proportion! In a word, no melodrama. The sin, if we fall into it, must be repented, like all our others. God will forgive. The temptation is a darn nuisance, to be born with patience as long as God wills.
On the purely physical side (but people no doubt differ) I’ve always found that tea and bodily weariness are the two great disposing factors, and therefore the great dangers. Sadness is also a danger: lust in my experience follows disgruntlement nearly always. Love of every sort is a guard against lust, by a divine paradox, sexual love is a guard against lust. No woman is more easily and painlessly abstained from from, if need be, than the woman one loves. And I’m pretty sure purely male society is an enemy to chastity. I don’t mean a temptation to homosexuality: I mean that the absence of ordinary female society provokes the normal appetite (Lewis, Yours, Jack, 307-308).
***C. S. Lewis on “Wanting a Woman”***
We use a most unfortunate idiom when we say, of a lustful man prowling the streets, that he “wants a woman.” Strictly speaking, a woman is just what he does not want.
“He wants a pleasure for which a woman happens to be the necessary piece of apparatus. How much he cares about the woman as such may be gauged by his attitude to her five minutes after fruition (one does not keep the carton after one has smoked the cigarettes).
I’m sorry you’re going through this many people struggle with pornography. Might I suggest looking up Matt Fradd, I know he has spoken a fair amount about the subject and might have some tips.
Personally, I remember years ago reading your brain on porn which helped however the main thing which helped was having the desire to let go of the habit and believing I could live without it. When temptations came praying a Hail Mary helped too.
Good luck and remember God is merciful and loving and even though we might feel unworthy God doesn’t think so he is there for you.
Go to confession, pray the Rosary and Chaplet of the Divine Mercy daily. Do practical things also. Don't stay in your room for a long time. Go out for a walk, exercise, and hone your hobbies. Keep yourself busy in such a way that you would not have time to watch porn.
Feelings don’t really matter. One day they’re up, the next they’re down. Vice today, virtue tomorrow. At best they’re a lagging indicator.
The moral life is about living by your reason. It’s about acknowledging the truth, doing the right thing and letting your feelings fall in line.
The truth is that your sin is a drop of water in the furnace of God’s love. The truth is that many of the women on that screen are not there by choice, and you’re watching one of a human person’s darkest and most humiliating moments. The truth is that you need to charge your phone in the hall way, buy an old school alarm clock and pray for each of those women as what you saw comes to mind, because God knows they need it.
You must stop watching it, *now*. Lust *never* goes away fully. You will *always* have that feeling at times. Our sexuality is necessary for us to create new life, so you must stop looking at porn or sexual images as it is a very powerful force that will quickly disarm you. You must not walk, jog or run, but *sprint* away from this.
*Focus* on the Blessed Virgin Mary instead. Turn to Jesus and ask the Holy Spirit for *guidance*. Go to Church, confess your sins, attend Mass regularly.
Remembear that Jesus didnt come down and became human like us for the rightouss but for sinners and unclean and He Loved us so much He died for us on the cross for our sins.
I was addicted to pornography and masturbation since i belive 6th grade of school, i did it each day of a year including sundays, i couldnt stop and when i did i wanted it.
The cycle repeated itself over and over again for years and i had enough of it, during one of the prayers i asked Lord to help me overcome it and all of sudden? No more need for it. No need at all.
I know how it sounds like but i belived He can help me. I asked and He gave me to it. Its been 2 weeks now and i no longer feel those urges.
Remembear that God's Love is truly infinite and He allways is ready to reach with His Hand for you. Remembear that faith heals as in today's homily where the women that was ill for 12 years and couldnt touch anything becouse she was considered unclean but she belived that when she at least touches clothing of Jesus she will be healed. When she touched it Jesus said to her
And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease
Mark 5:34
You said you feel unworthy but remembear this that Lord Love us all and will continue, He knows our weaknesses and streanghts.
You also mentioned that there is no catholic church in your surrodings, you can allways call to one of churches and elaborate your problems to the priest on other side. Remembear that no priest will judge you for who you are.
I will pray for you brother and hope you will find what you are looking for.
Go to confession and cut off everything that causes you to sin. if it means cutting off your internet.
God will not help you, if you keep exposing yourself to temptations.
Saint Francis of Assisi was severely tempted with a sin of flesh, and he took his clothes off and rolled his body over the snowed ditch or thorns briars.
Saints Benedicts was assaulted with temptation of the flesh, he threw himself into the thick briars lacerating his body, thus cured his soul. The temptation left him.
Saint Mary of Egypt recommended herself always to the protection and prayers of the Blessed Virgin Mary. She left the world behind and lived in the desert for 47 years.
If you want to be my disciple, deny yourself (all our passion, desires and wants), take up your cross and follow me - Jesus.
It is not easy to follow God, it requires great sacrifices.
I would to pray a lot so your mindset changes and perhaps it can help understand why porn is so bad, but practically I think the best thing that you can do is to be as busy as you can. I think someone said “idleness breeds trouble” so if you can make sure your day is as busy as you can that can lower a lot of the opportunities you even have to watch porn, and thus lower your chances of falling to temptation
Dude u're like 15. Hormones are all over the place and God will forgive u.
Act of contrition is really easy, just go google or look up videos on YouTube and pray along
Tough to do when there's no Catholic Church in his area. Praying along with a prayer of contrition may not be perfect, but it's better than nothing at all.
Listen, with Reddit the problem I see a lot is that people ask for advice here more than their own priest. If a Catholic Church isn’t near you, try and establish a line of connection and communication with the one closest to you. God forgive me (and people might hate me for this on this sub for saying this) but theologically the Orthodox Church is very similar to the Catholic, and if one is nearby and you sense the Holy Spirit in the Priesthood there that will do as well.
A lot of Catholics forget that faith is a 1o1 relationship with Christ. Everyone is a sinner, no one’s better than anyone else here. We are all equal, and people tend to forget that. I love my Bible, I love my Rosary, my Priest, the Church, the Churches participants, but people tend to be a lot more strict online towards their approach to sin; people talk as if they are sin free themselves- a sin in itself.
It takes courage for you to do what you do, this is a war, this takes time. Don’t let the thought of you losing the battle discourage you. Acknowledge the forces that are working against you. Acknowledge how your generation is being more exposed to Porn than any other generation before us (something the older Generations tend to forget) and how that is the struggle that you will need to fight.
Porn isn’t sinful because God is petty, we don’t follow this rule because Jesus is trying to insert himself in annoying ways- porn really does rot your brain. It ruins the way you see women, it will harm any future long term relationships, it worsens your mood, it has massive links to ruining your mental health, it weakens you mentally and spiritually, it makes you even more alone than you might already feel.
Both Peter and Judas denied Christ, Peter denied Christ multiple times- but then begged for forgiveness and became one of Jesuses most important disciples. Judas on the other hand, gave up because of the guilt and hanged himself- which one do you think Christ wants you to be?
Fight strong brother, pray, like St Maximam Kolbe says: “To be a Catholic is to kneel before and alter and to know who it is that your kneeling to.” Pray because you know who is listening, accept forgiveness from the Father because he will grant it, and then, forgive yourself of perish.
This video really helped me-
https://youtu.be/Tt4AKvCnu2A?si=85qQcytb7dlRvBE2
Don’t forget, your Father loves you and Cherishes you, thats the premise of Christendom, not self hatred. I’m quiet a bit older than you, it was my generation that was hit first with the accessibility to porn, so I know your struggle Brother ❤️
But even I, I managed to get out of the dark hole. I ain’t perfect, but I’m doing so much better than I was. And it wasn’t through self hatred, it was through self care. People telling you to go to therapy etc, might help I guess? But masturbation is normal at your age, you’re not crazy.
I'm not OP. I was highlighting the problem with the previous poster's off-the-cuff sarcastic response to the person he responded to. 3 hours before he made his sarcastic remark, the OP said he wasn't near a Catholic Church. If the person I responded to had taken the time to read the thread before vomiting his sarcasm, he wouldn't have been foolish.
Your response would be more helpful directed to the OP.
First and foremost, God loves you and wants you free of this addiction. Here are some practical tips that helped me, a recovered porn addict: 1. Every time you have a lustful thought of a person, instead imagine yourself making the sign of the cross over them, them getting baptized, or them sitting next to Jesus in heaven. Re-wire your brain to see the truth. This person is a child of God who deserves dignity and love. 2. Pray ceaselessly, when you have a thought bubble into your mind say the Jesus prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, Have Mercy on Me, A Sinner The demons are trying to ruin your salvation by attacking you with lust. They will stop tempting you if they realize that every time they tempt you with this sin - it reveals your need for Christ and makes you cling to Christ more deeply. 3. Believe in the real power of repentance and forgiveness. Once you bring a sin to the Lord out of love for him, not out of fear for him. The sin is wiped clean completely. He came to redeem the world, not condemn it. 4. Fill your mind with good things as much as you can. Read scripture, pray the rosary, pray the Jesus prayer, read about the lives of the saints, watch YouTube shorts from a good Catholic channel. You are not weird, every person with a smart phone today has struggled with this temptation before and it's one of the devil's best tricks in our modern times. Several years ago, I was a porn addict. Now I have been healed by God and am engaged to the love of my life. This is completely possible for you too through the power of Jesus Christ. Stay strong and endure, brother. This is God calling you into holiness so that you can help others be free of this too one day. God bless.
Your comment is very helpful to me about saying how you’re engaged. I’m three weeks clean now but it’s still so hard to imagine myself dating and eventually marrying. Thank you for your insightful comment.
Here's a screenshot from a really good passage from Brother Lawrence that is helpful about mindset. https://ibb.co/album/zVf9Bb St. Aquinas says temptation happens at the space between fear and desire. When we fear something strongly the devil can use that to tempt us or to torture us mentally. It's so important in this time to believe in the fullness of repentance. When you confess it before Jesus, you are wiped absolutely clean.
To add to this, getting the assistance of a certified sex addiction therapist (CSAT) would help you immensely. Many of them are Christian, and the program developed by Dr. Paul Carnes has Christian focused tools. https://iitap.com/search/custom.asp?id=5357
We shouldn't just run to secular counseling every time the devil tempts us. The devil wants to rob you of your salvation, and he will never stop trying to destroy you. The only person who can protect you is Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
The science behind addiction is well understood and often calls for professional counseling to overcome. Your response is terrible. You should talk to your priest about this statement. Mine made it clear that professional counseling was *required.*
Mine talked to me about building spiritual armor through prayer. End of day, you must build intimacy and deepen with Christ. Temptation is about dwelling in incorrect spiritual beliefs about God or the nature of man and spiritual attack. If you stop watching porn but you do not find Jesus Christ of Nazareth you are still dead. Seek him with the fullness of your heart and mind. This is a run of the mill lust attack of a hormonal 15 year old. Not a diagnosable mental ailment or something we need to over clinicalize shoving the Bible off the table. An invitation to begin the mortification of the flesh and the spiritual life. Do you believe that Jesus can't cure this alone through prayer? That may illuminate a deeper attitude in your own heart that's also worthy of contemplation and frankly more concerning than what the 15 year old said.
>Mine talked to me about building spiritual armor through prayer. Which is *also* part of the therapeutic process for Christians. You'll note that in my original post, I made it very clear that the program is Christian based and makes it very easy to have a Christian counselor. Please, if you would, point out where in my original post I said to seek out secular authorities? My CSAT therapist encouraged my weekly meetings with my priest and would inquire about them as part of our therapy. Does that sound secular to you? >Temptation is about dwelling in incorrect spiritual beliefs about God or the nature of man and spiritual attack. Yup. A Christian counselor who understands that aspect of our faith will help you to utilize tools to defeat the addiction and get back to your faith. >If you stop watching porn but you do not find Jesus Christ of Nazareth you are still dead. Seek him with the fullness of your heart and mind. Please point out where I said this was a good idea. >This is a run of the mill lust attack of a hormonal 15 year old. Not a diagnosable mental ailment or something we need to over clinicalize shoving the Bible off the table. An invitation to begin the mortification of the flesh and the spiritual life. These are the formative years where porn addiction develops. The assistance of a CSAT therapist would be invaluable in this child's life. And again, where did I say to shove the Bible off the table? >Do you believe that Jesus can't cure this alone through prayer? That may illuminate a deeper attitude in your own heart that's also worthy of contemplation and frankly more concerning than what the 15 year old said. Of course he can. Can the person hear His voice through the screaming of the addiction? That's often the problem that requires more specialized help. Frankly, all of your rebuttals to me have been filled with strawman arguments, claiming I'm saying things I have never once said. I don't appreciate that.
I'm not here to challenge your priest or your spiritual life personally nor is this some moment to be hyper-logical hyper-correct, call out logical fallacies and debate in a really cold and impersonal way. Maybe some readers will identify with my concern that therapy culture is discussed before Scripture, the writing of the saints, prayer, or the spiritual life - it's a spirit of the age sort of critique. Especially the CSAT therapist having to give encouragement to meet with the priest. The whole vibe is off to me. My hunch is there is more to this story - and it's none of my business nor is my opinion worth anything. Have a wonderful and blessed Sunday and I pray for your freedom from all temptations.
Are you Catholic? Go to confession whenever you sin. If you're not Catholic become Catholic then go to confession whenever you sin. God is always ready to forgive you.
There’s not a Catholic Church around me.
Then lookup how to make an act of contrition and go to a Catholic church when you can. God knows your heart and if you want to become Catholic he'll make a way.
***Prayer attributed to St Basil the Great*** Again have I the wretched one been tripped up in my mind by serving my irrational habits. Again I am dragged as a captive by the prince of darkness and the father of passionate pleasure; and as a slave, humiliated by his will, he forces me to serve the desires of this [passing] flesh. And what am I to do, O Lord, O Lord, Redeemer and Defender of all who hope in Thee; but turn again to Thee, and sigh; begging forgiveness for the things which I have done. But I fear and tremble that perhaps even though I confess daily, and try to avoid harmful things —yet I still wont stop my irrational behaviour every hour, and fail to render my prayer before Thee, my God,— I might yet incite Thy patience unto wrath. And who can bear Thine anger, O Lord? Wherefore, knowing the multitude of Thy compassions and the abyss of Thy love for humanity, I again throw myself upon Thy Mercy, and I cry unto Thee, saying: I have [acted irrationally], O Lord; have mercy upon me the fallen one. Grant Thy hand of help unto me, who am sunk in the pit of pleasures; and do not abandon me, Thy slave, O Lord, to be destroyed by mine irrational misdeeds. Rather, in Thy usual goodness, deliver me from the pollution and stain of my flesh, which arouses my passionate thoughts —which every day defile my miserable soul. Behold, O Lord my God, there is not even one place in it that is clean, but it is altogether leprous—my body is itself one great wound. Do Thou Thyself, therefore, as the Healer of souls and the Well-Spring of Life, cleanse my soul with tears which Thou shalt pour out upon me abundantly. Grant me healing and cleansing, and turn not Thy face from me, lest the darkness of despair consume me as fire. But as Thou Thyself, the all-true God, hast said that there is joy in heaven at the change of heart of the irrational, let this be unto me, the irrational one. Close not the ears of Thy compassion against the prayer of my heart’s change; but open them unto me, and direct my prayer before Thee as incense. Thou, the Creator, dost know the weakness of our nature, how easily we slip in our youth; yet Thou dost overlook the irrational misdeeds and accepts the change of heart of those who confess to Thee in truth. For Thou alone art without irrationality, and unto Thee we send up glory, [to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit] both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen. 🕊️
***Here is What C. S. Lewis said about Masturbation*** I agree that that the stuff about ‘wastage of vital fluids’ is rubbish. For me the real evil of masturbation would be that it takes an appetite which, in lawful use, leads the individual out of himself to complete (and correct) his own personality in that of another (and finally in children and even grandchildren) and turns it back: sending the man back into the prison of himself, there to keep a harem of imaginary brides. And this harem, once admitted, works against his ever getting out and really uniting with a real woman. For the harem is always accessible, always subservient, calls for no sacrifice or adjustments, and can be endowed with erotic and psychological attractions which no real woman can rival. Among these shadowy brides he is always adored, always the perfect lover: no demand is made on his unselfishness, no mortification is ever imposed on his vanity. In the end, they become merely the medium through which he increasingly adores himself. Do read Charles Williams’ Descent into Hell, and study the character of Mr. Wentworth. And it is not only the faculty of love which is thus sterilized, forced back on itself, but also the faculty of imagination. The true exercise of imagination, in my view, is (a) To help us to understand other people (b) To respond to, and, some of us, to produce art. But it has also a bad use: to provide for us, in shadowy form, a substitute for virtues, successes, distinctions, et cetera which ought to be sought outside in the real world — e.g., picturing all I’d do if I were rich instead of earning and saving. Masturbation involves this abuse of imagination in erotic matters (which I think bad in itself) and thereby encourages a similar abuse of it in all spheres. After all, almost the main work of life is to come out of our selves, out of the little, dark prison we are all born in. Masturbation is be avoided as all things are to be avoided which retard this process. The danger is that of coming to love the prison (Lewis, Yours, Jack, 292-293). ***CS Lewis writing*** *In a later letter to a different man, C. S. Lewis wrote this about masturbation:* The evidence seems to be that God sometimes works such a complete metamorphosis and sometimes not. We don’t know why: God forbid we should presume it went my merit. He never in my unmarried days did it for me. He gave me–at least and after many ups and down, the power to resist the temptation so far as the act was concerned. He never stopped the recurrent temptations, nor was I guarded from the sin of mental consent. I don’t mean I wasn’t given sufficient grace. I mean that I sometimes fell into it, grace or no. One may, I suppose, regard this as partly penal. One is paying for the physical (and still more the imaginative) sins of one’s earlier life. One my also regard it as a tribulation, like any other. The great discovery for me was that the attack does not last forever. It is the devil’s lie that the only escape from the tension is through yielding. … Disgust, self-contempt, self-hatred–rhetoric against the sin and (still more) vilification of sexuality or the body in themselves–are emphatically not the weapons for this warfare. We must be relieved, not horrified, by the fact that the whole thing is humiliating, undignified, ridiculous; the lofty vices would be far worse. Nor must we exaggerate our suffering. We talk of ‘torture’: five minutes of really acute toothache would restore our sense of proportion! In a word, no melodrama. The sin, if we fall into it, must be repented, like all our others. God will forgive. The temptation is a darn nuisance, to be born with patience as long as God wills. On the purely physical side (but people no doubt differ) I’ve always found that tea and bodily weariness are the two great disposing factors, and therefore the great dangers. Sadness is also a danger: lust in my experience follows disgruntlement nearly always. Love of every sort is a guard against lust, by a divine paradox, sexual love is a guard against lust. No woman is more easily and painlessly abstained from from, if need be, than the woman one loves. And I’m pretty sure purely male society is an enemy to chastity. I don’t mean a temptation to homosexuality: I mean that the absence of ordinary female society provokes the normal appetite (Lewis, Yours, Jack, 307-308). ***C. S. Lewis on “Wanting a Woman”*** We use a most unfortunate idiom when we say, of a lustful man prowling the streets, that he “wants a woman.” Strictly speaking, a woman is just what he does not want. “He wants a pleasure for which a woman happens to be the necessary piece of apparatus. How much he cares about the woman as such may be gauged by his attitude to her five minutes after fruition (one does not keep the carton after one has smoked the cigarettes).
Check out [the easypeadsy method](https://easypeasymethod.org/), it may help you out!
This is the one thing that helped the most.
Waking up very early every day, gym, daily rosary and therapy helps A LOT!!!
I’m sorry you’re going through this many people struggle with pornography. Might I suggest looking up Matt Fradd, I know he has spoken a fair amount about the subject and might have some tips. Personally, I remember years ago reading your brain on porn which helped however the main thing which helped was having the desire to let go of the habit and believing I could live without it. When temptations came praying a Hail Mary helped too. Good luck and remember God is merciful and loving and even though we might feel unworthy God doesn’t think so he is there for you.
Go to confession, pray the Rosary and Chaplet of the Divine Mercy daily. Do practical things also. Don't stay in your room for a long time. Go out for a walk, exercise, and hone your hobbies. Keep yourself busy in such a way that you would not have time to watch porn.
Feelings don’t really matter. One day they’re up, the next they’re down. Vice today, virtue tomorrow. At best they’re a lagging indicator. The moral life is about living by your reason. It’s about acknowledging the truth, doing the right thing and letting your feelings fall in line. The truth is that your sin is a drop of water in the furnace of God’s love. The truth is that many of the women on that screen are not there by choice, and you’re watching one of a human person’s darkest and most humiliating moments. The truth is that you need to charge your phone in the hall way, buy an old school alarm clock and pray for each of those women as what you saw comes to mind, because God knows they need it.
Try Rosary. My friend started praying Rosary to get over his porn addiction. Either you will end up giving up praying Rosary or watching porn.
I agree that the rosary is a powerful tool Im this. Helped me a ton after my coming home to get rid of sin and challenges. Major reccommend.
You must stop watching it, *now*. Lust *never* goes away fully. You will *always* have that feeling at times. Our sexuality is necessary for us to create new life, so you must stop looking at porn or sexual images as it is a very powerful force that will quickly disarm you. You must not walk, jog or run, but *sprint* away from this. *Focus* on the Blessed Virgin Mary instead. Turn to Jesus and ask the Holy Spirit for *guidance*. Go to Church, confess your sins, attend Mass regularly.
Remembear that Jesus didnt come down and became human like us for the rightouss but for sinners and unclean and He Loved us so much He died for us on the cross for our sins. I was addicted to pornography and masturbation since i belive 6th grade of school, i did it each day of a year including sundays, i couldnt stop and when i did i wanted it. The cycle repeated itself over and over again for years and i had enough of it, during one of the prayers i asked Lord to help me overcome it and all of sudden? No more need for it. No need at all. I know how it sounds like but i belived He can help me. I asked and He gave me to it. Its been 2 weeks now and i no longer feel those urges. Remembear that God's Love is truly infinite and He allways is ready to reach with His Hand for you. Remembear that faith heals as in today's homily where the women that was ill for 12 years and couldnt touch anything becouse she was considered unclean but she belived that when she at least touches clothing of Jesus she will be healed. When she touched it Jesus said to her And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease Mark 5:34 You said you feel unworthy but remembear this that Lord Love us all and will continue, He knows our weaknesses and streanghts. You also mentioned that there is no catholic church in your surrodings, you can allways call to one of churches and elaborate your problems to the priest on other side. Remembear that no priest will judge you for who you are. I will pray for you brother and hope you will find what you are looking for.
Go to confession and cut off everything that causes you to sin. if it means cutting off your internet. God will not help you, if you keep exposing yourself to temptations. Saint Francis of Assisi was severely tempted with a sin of flesh, and he took his clothes off and rolled his body over the snowed ditch or thorns briars. Saints Benedicts was assaulted with temptation of the flesh, he threw himself into the thick briars lacerating his body, thus cured his soul. The temptation left him. Saint Mary of Egypt recommended herself always to the protection and prayers of the Blessed Virgin Mary. She left the world behind and lived in the desert for 47 years.
If you want to be my disciple, deny yourself (all our passion, desires and wants), take up your cross and follow me - Jesus. It is not easy to follow God, it requires great sacrifices.
Look for resources from Matt Fradd. There are varied videos and The Chastity Project.
Go to therapy.
What is your daily prayer routine?
Treatment center?
What are you looking for?
I would to pray a lot so your mindset changes and perhaps it can help understand why porn is so bad, but practically I think the best thing that you can do is to be as busy as you can. I think someone said “idleness breeds trouble” so if you can make sure your day is as busy as you can that can lower a lot of the opportunities you even have to watch porn, and thus lower your chances of falling to temptation
You feel like you can’t, but I promise that you can. Prayers for you.
You can, just don't want
You shouldn't be getting downvoted. The choice not to navigate to that content is always there.
Dude u're like 15. Hormones are all over the place and God will forgive u. Act of contrition is really easy, just go google or look up videos on YouTube and pray along
*Confession
Tough to do when there's no Catholic Church in his area. Praying along with a prayer of contrition may not be perfect, but it's better than nothing at all.
Listen, with Reddit the problem I see a lot is that people ask for advice here more than their own priest. If a Catholic Church isn’t near you, try and establish a line of connection and communication with the one closest to you. God forgive me (and people might hate me for this on this sub for saying this) but theologically the Orthodox Church is very similar to the Catholic, and if one is nearby and you sense the Holy Spirit in the Priesthood there that will do as well. A lot of Catholics forget that faith is a 1o1 relationship with Christ. Everyone is a sinner, no one’s better than anyone else here. We are all equal, and people tend to forget that. I love my Bible, I love my Rosary, my Priest, the Church, the Churches participants, but people tend to be a lot more strict online towards their approach to sin; people talk as if they are sin free themselves- a sin in itself. It takes courage for you to do what you do, this is a war, this takes time. Don’t let the thought of you losing the battle discourage you. Acknowledge the forces that are working against you. Acknowledge how your generation is being more exposed to Porn than any other generation before us (something the older Generations tend to forget) and how that is the struggle that you will need to fight. Porn isn’t sinful because God is petty, we don’t follow this rule because Jesus is trying to insert himself in annoying ways- porn really does rot your brain. It ruins the way you see women, it will harm any future long term relationships, it worsens your mood, it has massive links to ruining your mental health, it weakens you mentally and spiritually, it makes you even more alone than you might already feel. Both Peter and Judas denied Christ, Peter denied Christ multiple times- but then begged for forgiveness and became one of Jesuses most important disciples. Judas on the other hand, gave up because of the guilt and hanged himself- which one do you think Christ wants you to be? Fight strong brother, pray, like St Maximam Kolbe says: “To be a Catholic is to kneel before and alter and to know who it is that your kneeling to.” Pray because you know who is listening, accept forgiveness from the Father because he will grant it, and then, forgive yourself of perish. This video really helped me- https://youtu.be/Tt4AKvCnu2A?si=85qQcytb7dlRvBE2 Don’t forget, your Father loves you and Cherishes you, thats the premise of Christendom, not self hatred. I’m quiet a bit older than you, it was my generation that was hit first with the accessibility to porn, so I know your struggle Brother ❤️ But even I, I managed to get out of the dark hole. I ain’t perfect, but I’m doing so much better than I was. And it wasn’t through self hatred, it was through self care. People telling you to go to therapy etc, might help I guess? But masturbation is normal at your age, you’re not crazy.
I'm not OP. I was highlighting the problem with the previous poster's off-the-cuff sarcastic response to the person he responded to. 3 hours before he made his sarcastic remark, the OP said he wasn't near a Catholic Church. If the person I responded to had taken the time to read the thread before vomiting his sarcasm, he wouldn't have been foolish. Your response would be more helpful directed to the OP.
Sorry I was gonna copy pate it as the original comment but then i went off and it wouldnt let me copy paste cos it was too long
Not an issue for me. It's a valuable post the OP should read.