Healthy Choices, Brighter Tomorrows

In Don’t Call It Love, Patrick Carnes identifies 11 different categories or types of sexual addiction:

1. Fantasy Sex: Thinking/obsessing about sexual adventures; inordinate amounts of time spent losing self in fantasy about future and past; neglecting commitments because of fantasy life; dramatizing a particular role in your fantasy; creating sexualized or seductive atmospheres that you prefer to keep as fantasy and not act; spending a large amount of time preparing for a sexual episode.
2. Seductive Role Sex: Having many relationships at the same time or one after another; using seduction to gain power over others; thinking that sex will give power over another; flirtatious or seductive behaviors; hustling in singles clubs, bars, or health clubs; maintaining open calendars or failing to make commitments in order to be available for sex; bringing sex or sexualized humor into conversations; having to be sexual in order to feel good about self.
3. Anonymous Sex: Engaging in sex with anonymous partners; cruising beaches, parks, parking lots, rest rooms and baths; having one-night stands; participating in group sex.
4. Paying For Sex: Paying for sexually explicit phone calls; using an escort of phone service; paying someone for sexual activity; using personal columns to find sex partners; patronizing saunas, massage parlors, or rap lounges.
5. Trading Sex: Making sexually-explicit videotapes and photographs; posing for sexually explicit videotapes and photographs; exposing yourself from stage or for hire; pimping others for sexual activities; receiving money for sexual activity; receiving drugs for sexual activity; administering drugs to force sexual activity.
6. Voyeuristic Sex: Using sexually-explicit magazines or videotapes; having collections of pornography at home or work; patronizing adult bookstores and strip shows; using binoculars or telescopes to watch people; looking through windows of apartments and houses; sexualizing others in public places; sexualizing materials not sexually explicit.
7. Exhibitionist Sex: Exposing yourself in public places, such as parks, streets and school yards; exposing yourself from your home or car; being sexual or dressing and undressing in public; using choice of clothing to expose yourself; belonging to a nudist club to find sex partners.
8. Intrusive Sex: Making inappropriate sexual advances or gestures; touching or fondling others without permission; using sexually-explicit stories, humor or language at inappropriate times or places; using power positions (e.g. as professional, clergy, or employer) to exploit or be sexual with another person; forcing sexual activity on any person, including your spouse or partner.
9. Pain Exchange: Receiving physical harm or pain during sexual activity to intensify sexual pleasure; causing physical harm or pain to a partner to intensify sexual pleasure; willingly giving up power or acting out the victim role in sexual activity; using sexual aids to enhance sexual experience.
10. Object Sex: Masturbating with objects; cross-dressing to add to sexual pleasure; using fetishes as part of sexual rituals; engaging in sexual activity with animals.
11. Sex With Children: Sharing inappropriate sexual information with children; exposing children to adult sexual activities; forcing sexual activity on a child within or without the family; engaging in sex with a consenting minor; watch child pornography.