|
Where your sexual kinks
come from?
Weird sexual fetishes or fantasies are brain
symptoms. They fall into the category of
impulsive-compulsive disorders: impulsive when
you can't control the behavior and compulsive
when, even though you may want to, you can't
stop. A person who's prone to voyeurism,
exhibitionism, bestiality, transvestism, S and
M, or infantilism (deriving sexual pleasure from
being treated like a baby) often has too much
activity in the emotional parts of the brain, as
we see in people who have obsessive-compulsive
disorders, and too little activity in the PFC,
or judgment center. A study of 26 men with
unusual sexual fantasies found that using
medications to balance these two areas of the
brain gave the men significant relief. But then,
so did wearing an adult diaper and being handed
a rattle. You can't tell with some people.
How you can stop weird
sexual hang-ups and obsessions from taking over
your life, and regain control?
Even though men are programmed to look at
beautiful women and populate the earth, the
human brain, especially the prefrontal cortex,
has evolved to the point where, with proper
training, we can be thoughtful, goal oriented,
and focused on our families. You are not a
rodent, doomed to follow the pattern of hormone
receptors in your brain. Ask yourself, What are
my goals for my relationships? Stay focused on
loving and protecting the people in your life,
and it's mind over what really matters. Our
"Head Check" and "Am I Normal?" columnist,
Daniel G. Amen, M.D., is a psychiatrist and the
author of Healing Anxiety.
Expert:
Daniel Amen, M.D.,
|
