A Key to Overall Recovery: Staying Grounded

By Eddie Capparucci, Ph.D., LPC, CSAS

A young man in his early 20s, who has wrestled with pornography since he was 13, recently confided in me, saying, "I've tried so many techniques over the past five years to stop watching porn, but nothing has worked. What do you think is the answer to breaking this habit?"

His question highlights a fundamental misunderstanding that I believe is a significant barrier to achieving true sobriety. When someone approaches the cessation of problematic sexual behaviors (PSBs) from the perspective of merely breaking a "habit," they are setting themselves up for continued struggle, much like this young man.

The roots of PSBs often lie in a deeper, more complex emotional landscape. These behaviors are not just mindless habits; they are coping mechanisms born out of a need to silence emotional distress, often stemming from inadequate emotional bonding during formative years. PSBs act as subconscious distractions, dulling the noise of unresolved pain and compensating for the lack of authentic connection in one's life.

Consider another recent conversation with a client who confessed to struggling with edging behaviors. He believed that taking a vacation would shield him from an impending slip or relapse, a fear that was haunting him.

While I commend both of these individuals for their awareness of their struggles, they are not focusing on the correct pathway for recovery. Recovery is not about breaking a bad habit, like biting your fingernails, or escaping to a holiday destination to relax. True recovery lies in becoming grounded.

So, what does it mean to be grounded?

Being grounded is the practice of staying emotionally and mentally balanced. It is about taking intentional steps to address the critical emotional voids in your life. It involves nurturing your emotional resilience, fostering genuine connections with others, and learning to sit with discomfort rather than running from it.

Being grounded is understanding that you deal with anxiety — in many cases hidden — that leads to increased compulsiveness. This in turn increases the likely of making poor or reckless decisions.

Grounding is not a quick fix but instead it is a continuous process of self-reflection and growth. It means identifying the underlying emotional triggers that drive PSBs and addressing them head-on, rather than merely suppressing the symptoms. Grounding is about replacing destructive coping mechanisms with healthy, life-affirming practices that reinforce your sense of self-worth and belonging. Staying grounded creates strong and lasting roots.

For the young man struggling with porn, and for anyone grappling with PSBs, the answer is not in finding the perfect technique to ‘break a habit.’ Instead, it is in cultivating a life where emotional needs are met in healthy, authentic ways. This requires patience, self-compassion, and the willingness to engage in the often uncomfortable practice of being vulnerable. Managing fears instead of avoiding them through PSBs is a must-have on the road to sobriety, as is proactively reducing your anxiety. Only then can true recovery take root, transforming not just behaviors, but the way you engage with life.

Eddie Capparucci is a licensed professional counselor certified in treating Problematic Sexual Behaviors. Among his many clients, Eddie has worked with professional athletes, including NFL and MLB players and television personalities. He is the creator of the Inner Child Model™ for treating PSBs. He is the author of Going Deeper: How the Inner Child Impacts Your Sexual Addiction and Why Men Struggle to Love: Overcoming Relational Blind Spots as well as several other books.

He is the administrator of the websites www.MenAgainstPorn.org and www.SexuallyPureMen.com. Over the years, he has spoken to numerous organizations regarding the harmful impact pornography has on individuals, relationships, and society. He hosts a monthly webcast: Getting to the Other Side: Helping Couples Navigate the Road to Recovery. You can learn more about his Inner Child Model at www.innerchild-sexaddiction.com.