YOU ARE NOT ALONE - A companion online community discussion board for The Mental Illness Happy Hour podcast with Paul Gilmartin

I didn't even know such a thing existed: Compulsive Sexual Avoidance, or Sexual Anorexia. It's a telephone support group, which is less ideal than in person, but I'm glad to have found something. First meeting will be on Tuesday.

I also called my mom today, for the first time in probably a year. We had a very good, very long, real conversation. She still truly believes I was not molested as a child, and I still see so many behaviors that point to me having been abused even though I don't remember it. I just want to know the truth, but I don't have a time machine like in the survey.

Telephone support group? How does that work - like a conference call?

I guess so, yeah. The organizer gave me a phone number and an access number to call in. Strangely, it's part of Sex Addicts Anonymous, but apparently it's possible to have an addiction to avoiding sex? It's kind of complicated and I don't quite understand. Here's the website he gave me about the program. http://saa-recovery.org/SAALiterature/English/CSA/ I don't see any mention in the literature about avoiding sex because of past trauma or abuse, but I'll see what it's all about when I call in on Tuesday.

I don't really understand how sex avoidance is under the umbrella of sexual addiction. I would love to have a healthy sex relationship with my boyfriend, but when he touches me in a sexual way I giggle nervously and turn away. I love him SO much, I trust him utterly. I've never in my life had any periods of sex addiction. Did my most recent ex who sexual abused me for 3.5 years cause this fear of sex? Perhaps a childhood encounter that I can't remember but I see all the signs. This poist isn't goin gto make any sense because I just took the ambien. But really, I don't understand ......will the support group for Compulsive Sexual Avoidance allow for people who were never sex addicts, but once had a normal sex life and then bad shit hapened that hurt and scared them, and now they can't have sex.

ambien panda is here

Ah, sleepy meds...

I hope you get some answers from the support group and look forward to a report!

Haha!! at my post. I will report tomorrow morning after the meeting!

Hey, Nevina!

I got yer back, kid! Hope all goes well

xoxoxo--->serious_oregon

( thanks, doll!)

So I called in. It was really overwhelming. But good. I still don't know if I quite fit into what the group is about, but I did identify with a lot of what others were saying. I wish it was in person rather than over the phone. There were more than 20 people on the call. It was only my second time going to any kind of support group ever (the first time was a Clutterers Anonymous meeting with only two other people there, I didn't have the energy to go back to such a small meeting).

It felt like a very close-knit group and I'll definitely call again next time. Feeling the energy of a larger group gave me motivation to hopefully check out a local support group (different topic) that I've been pondering for a while.

Go, Nevina! Good job, sister