Psychosexual Counselling

Pain and Pleasure: Masochism as a psychosexual disorder

June 28, 2016 by Albert

Anytime one thinks they can apply a universal truth to humanity, it is bound to be contradicted. For example, pain and suffering is believed to be negative because they are not pleasurable. Enter the psychosexual disorder known as masochism. Sexual masochism has long captured the imaginations of psychologists and the curious. Sexual masochism is the active seeking for pain and suffering for purposes of sexual gratification. Coming in many forms, Masochism is so common that the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) Edition IV – the manual published by the American Psychiatric Association covering all mental health disorders– categorizes it as being a psychosexual disorder. According to the DSM, there are three important symptoms to be diagnosed as suffering from the psychosexual disorder: First, the need for sexual punishment has to have been recurring for at least six months. Second, the motive for this behavior is in achieving sexual arousal. Third, these sexual urges and behaviors begin to figure so prominently into the psyche of those who suffer from it that it impairs basic social functions. Sexual masochism may contradict every rational conclusion we’ve drawn on pain and pleasure, of love and hate: but, then, why is this submissive and pain-seeking source of pleasure so eternal and common?

Though it appears it many forms, masochism commonly include the use of accessories, such as handcuffs, cages, chains, and ropes. Other acts and masochistic perversions include spanking, whipping, burning, and more extreme forms include beatings and electrical shocks. Sexual masochism is, by the standards of the DSM, a disorder of the mentally ill. But, understanding sexual masochism from that perspective allows a large part of the equation to be disregarded simply because masochism contradicts our basic understandings of sexuality. After all, is love not inextricably intertwined with pleasure rather than pain?

Richard Freiherr von Krafft-Ebing was an Austro-German sexologist who was among the first to explore case studies of sexual perversions in his 1886 text, Psychopathia Sexualis. Before Sigmund Freud released his theories on sexual perversions and psychosexual disorders, this text behaved as the definitive authority on sexual subjects that were highly taboo when published, such as homosexuality, female orgasm, and masochism. “By masochism,” he wrote, “I understand a peculiar perversion of the physical sexual life in which the individual is affected, in sexual feeling and thought, is controlled by the idea of being completely and unconditionally subject to the will of a person of the opposite sex.” Krafft-Ebing gave this absolute submissiveness the name of ‘masochism’ after famed writer, Leopold von Sacher-Masoch whose imagery of females dressed in fur holding whips in his book Venus in Fur became (more…)

Sadism as a psychosexual disorder

June 28, 2016 by Albert

“The perfect counterpart to masochism is sadism,” wrote Austro-German sexologist Richard Freiherr von Krafft-Ebing in his 1886 text Psychopathia Sexualis. “While in the former there is a desire to suffer and be subjected to violence, in the latter the wish is to inflict pain and use of violence.” When Krafft-Ebing wrote of sexual perversions in his analysis, many of these perversions and sexual dysfunctions had been long around, but they were rarely viewed as psychological disorders. Sadism was a concept that was discussed, but given almost mythical status: Tales of Vlad the Impaler’s sadistic methods of torturing and killing inspired Bam Stroker to base the iconic Count Dracula character on elevating him to become a household sadist around the world. It was Richard von Krafft-Ebing that coined the term sadists to provide medical credibility to describe people that were aroused over the prospect of sexually, violently, or psychologically dominating a submissive subject. The etymology of the word sadism is derived from the French author, Marquis de Sade whose political beliefs of freedom unrestrained by morality or law was illustrated in abundance in the sexual perversions described in his novels. Indeed, these sexual perversions were so pornographic that he was incarcerated into various prisons and mental asylums over 32 years. Understanding how sadistic personalities worked became a key focus for psychologists following Krafft-Ebing’s initial analysis.

At the most basic level, psychosexual disorders are disturbances in sexual function due to psychological problems. Contemporary psychology has subcategorized psychosexual disorders into three of its most common forms: sexual dysfunctions, gender identity disorders, and sexual perversions. They are not all mutually independent from one another. In fact, sadism often manifests itself in (more…)

The influence of Virilization on masculinization

June 28, 2016 by Albert

In a world that dwells on its differences over its similarities, virilization offers a thought provoking and perplexing backlash to humanity’s attempts to focus on the menial differences. History is replete with cultures and societies finding new and inventive ways to create schisms between one another as a means to affirm their own uniqueness in the world, whether it is through race, religion, wealth, or among endless micro differences. However, no difference is as natural and ancient as that between the genders. Removing all the gender stereotypes various cultures have assigned to the individual sexes, the light shines on the real differences between the genders. Since the beginning of time, the development of most species has depended on the coming together of the two sexes which fulfills the basic biological bottom line of reproducing and having offspring. Physiologically and biologically, the shape and anatomy size differences between males and females are not opinions of equality and societal roles to be debated, but rather tangible and measurable. As civilization has grown comfortable with gender roles and differences, however, virilization offers a stark counterpoint to even these most basic truths of the inherent physical differences of men and women.

The influence of Virilization on masculinization

In biology and medicine, virilization refers to the biological development of the sex differences between the two sexes. It is synonymous with the masculinization of the body, which begins at the prenatal sexual differentiation and is reinforced at any period when (more…)

Psychosexual disorders among Sex offenders

June 28, 2016 by Albert

The offenses of sex offenders are represented by a heterogeneous population. Serial killers such as Jeffrey Dahmers represent an extreme form of sex offenders by committing acts of necrophilia, cannibalism, torture, and murder for the purpose of sexual gratification. Other forms of illegal offenses and sex crime in sex offenders can include sexual abuse, downloading child pornography, or statutory rape. The motivation for sex offenders, their offenses, and their sex crime is not uniform either, and the origins of their perversions are not always straightforward. This is because society’s conception of sexuality remains clouded in ambiguity. “Sexual deviances generally arise from sexual fantasies,” writes former FBI profiler Robert R. Hazelwood in his book Practical Aspects of Rape Investigation. “Through a gradual process of enactment, they also become the template for many offenders’ patterns of serial sexual offenses.” Though the boundaries concerning what constitutes a “sex offender” is dependent on country and culture, there is little dispute about the influence psychosexual disorders play in dictating certain sexual behaviors and, as a result, sex crimes.

Psychosexual disorders among Sex offenders

Contemporary psychology subcategorizes psychosexual disorders into three parts: sexual dysfunctions, sexual perversions, and gender identity disorders. The most prevalent motivation for the offenses of sex offenders involves the cultivation of sexual perversions. Sexual perversions involve projecting strong sexual desires towards an unusual situations or objects. However, it is also true that (more…)

Psychosexual dysfunctions in the USA

June 28, 2016 by Albert

During the 1960s, America experienced a dramatic shift in traditional values related to psychological views on sexuality. With profound societal change occurring with the Civil rights movement and the baby boom generation, the first modern era of open sexuality in America challenged established sexual norms. The height of the sexual revolution was accompanied by massive physiological and psychological breakthroughs: The advent of the birth control pill shook the traditional expectations and understanding of female sexuality. Coinciding with the sexual revolution was renewed focus in psychology dedicated towards sexuality in America, typified by the works of Alfred Kinsey, William Masters, Virginia Johnson among many others. Yet, the story of sexuality and psychosexual dysfunctions in America is not without its challenges, particularly when socioeconomic circumstances are focused on.

A study in 2008 by the Alan Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health and rights think-tank, reported that 1.2 million abortions occur in America every year. This public health and moral dilemma is only recently being understood from the context of poverty, ethnicity, the inadequacy of current health services, and, most importantly, the psychological impact of all these factors. The patterns in the socioeconomic characteristics of (more…)