PATHOS - Sex Addiction Screening Questionnaire

Sex addiction is a severe disorder that negatively impacts our relationships, our health, and our ability to function in society. PATHOS-SX is more than a standard sex addiction screening questionnaire, however. It is designed to be an educational tool designed to help both clinicians, the general public, and now even parents guide the discussions crucial to understanding and intervening for sex addiction.

What is the PATHOS questionnaire?

'Sex' itself is a controversial topic among many people around us, and sex addiction is the one that nobody wants to talk to or to listen to even with the closest person of their circle. But what researchers around the world want to convey is, sex addiction is one of the major problems for mental illness.Some experts see sex addiction as a genuine behavioral addiction, while others categorize it as a mental illness. Many people have issues with compulsive sexual behaviors and also show signs of other mental illnesses.

PATHOS questionnaire is a screening tool to diagnose and measure the intensity of sexual addiction in individuals used by mental health practitioners. It is also taken as a self-administered quiz to find whether your sexual desire is an addiction or not.

Sex addiction as a Mental Illness

When it comes to behavioral addiction, the first thing it does is completely take the individual’s thoughts. A person with sex addiction also faces the same. He/she cannot think of the consequences of their behavior beyond getting their next high. Like any addiction, sex addiction also takes a normal habit to an extreme end without being concerned about the toll it takes on your physical and mental health, how it affects the relationship between you and your partner, or its overall effect on your inner harmony.

PATHOS - A quick screening tool to diagnose sex addiction

PATHOS questionnaire is one of the rapid screeners for diagnosing sex addiction or hypersexuality in individuals. It is developed from the original SAST- Sexual Addiction Screening Test, a 25 item tool used for the same. This tool is a straightforward and short one that can be done in less than a minute, but it produces results that are as accurate as the best psychometric tools so far used around the world.

There is a list of six questions in this tool, the core concept of those six questions are combined to form the term “PATHOS.”

Preoccupied

Do you often find yourself obsessing about sexual thoughts? While having sexual thoughts is healthy, spending excessive amounts of time planning or fantasizing about sex or the ideas around sex is not. You may have a certain someone or multiple someones who you create unrealistic worlds around. A mind preoccupied with sex is living in an addictive system.

Ashamed

When you feel shame to express your sexual thoughts or fascinations with your loved ones, then definitely you need to check on your sexual behavior. Sex is a feeling to express and connect with those you love; if it gives you a feeling of guilt or shame, it needs attention.

Treatment

Have you ever sought help for sexual behavior you did not like? Perhaps you grew up in a family where sex wasn’t talked about or was considered bad or wrong? Sex can be a tough topic to discuss, especially if you’ve received the message that what you’re thinking or doing is wrong.

Hurt

If any of your sexual behavior affects your loved ones, if they are affected emotionally or physically. Then you have a high chance of hypersexuality. This is often very tough knowing that our behavior affects others, ensuring it reaches the addiction level.

Out of Control:

When your behavior is out of control, exhausting, and terrifying to your partner, it is likely addictive.

Sad

Do you feel depressed or sad after you have sex? Do you regret your behavior while it’s happening or perhaps when it’s over? Maybe you regret your behavior before it’s even started? Whatever it may be, your sexual desires end with happiness; if not, it needs to be given attention and diagnosis.

How to interpret a PATHOS screening tool?

• If you answered “Yes” to just one of these questions, there is a low or no chance of sexual addiction. But still think you have an addiction to be diagnosed, you need additional assessment for mental illness.
• If you answered “Yes” to 2 0r 3 questions, then there is a possibility of sexual addiction.
• If you answered “Yes” for more than 3 questions, you definitely need treatment, and you need to consult a therapist as early as possible.

Conclusion

According to researchers, sex and porn addiction are turning to be a major threat to humanity. It is proven that 72% of those with sex addiction are affected by child abuse in their early stage. It is proved that 80% of molesters are affected by sex addiction. These are the facts and statistics around sex addiction that prove it an important societal issue that needs to be addressed quickly. Apart from this, the effect on an individual's mental health and the emotional breakdown is highly affecting inner peace and harmony. So be aware of what you are going through is crucial to maintain your stability.

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