The first ever pilot study for the treatment of porn addiction has received ethical approval, as society deals with a sharp rise in the number of people seeking medical help for the issue.
The Pivotal Recovery Course, led by psychotherapist Dr Paula Hall, will aim to help people struggling with unwanted sexual behaviours and impulses.
Dr Hall already runs the Laurel Centre, a specialist private clinic that treats people with porn addiction.
Last year, the centre warned that working from home had fuelled a sharp rise in the number of people reporting an addiction to porn. Some patients accessing the centre were said to be watching up to 14 hours of porn a day.
The pilot study will follow the CHOICE recovery model, which spells out six steps of recovery: challenging core beliefs, having a vision, overcoming compulsive behaviours, identifying positive sexuality, connecting with others and establishing confident recovery.
Participants will listen to 60 podcasts accompanied by workbooks and further resources.
Dr Hall told the Standard: “We are thrilled to announce that we have received ethical approval for the Pivotal Recovery Course. To be able to offer help to those directly suffering from addiction and raise awareness of these issues is something we are extremely passionate about
“My message to those struggling with compulsive sexual behaviours or porn addiction would be to seek help. If you or a loved one are feeling overwhelmed, or that you cannot tackle this alone, there is always help available.”
The study, run in partnership with Leeds Trinity University, will be offered to users free of charge.
Profits from the course will be donated to charitable organisations that undertake essential research and raise public awareness for porn and sex addiction.
Health experts have raised concern that the easy accessibility of porn online has driven a surge in addiction.
Figures released by the UK Addiction Treatment Group (UKAT) show that 60,000 people in Britain visited its online porn addiction support site in 2022.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) classifies porn addiction as an impulse control disorder rather than an addiction.
But clinicians and therapists have called for the porn industry to be regulated like others that encourage behavioural addiction, such as gambling.
