'It gave me superpowers': The men who say sexual abstinence changed their lives

A man who gave up masturbation for 700 days says his abstinence gave him "superpowers".

He is one of 200,000 men who have joined the "NoFap" online community whose members swear off self-pleasure.

Members of the Reddit community abstain from watching pornography and masturbating for periods of time. Some see “rebooting” or “fapstinence” as a quick test of self-control, while others use it as an attempt to treat porn addictions they claim have rendered them unable to become aroused by “real life” sex.

In a heartfelt post, Reddit user Brohit wrote that he quit masturbating two and a half years ago, and felt his mind has become clearer and that he “was at peace more often.”

He said he felt “superpowers” including a sudden increase in confidence, laser sharp focus, and energy boosts. But added: “How do we know these superpowers aren’t just normal human tendencies?”

He goes on to suggest that the “constant glorification of sex” has “fogged our general perspective”.

“Now we can only think about sex and what it would be like to sleep with women that have ‘perfect’ bodies."

He added that his pledge also made him realise he has other addictions and obsessions that “aren’t anything severe or serious”, but have caused his confidence to be “shaken apart”. They include constantly messaging women and using dating sites in search of “meaningless sex”.

“How’s any of this different from masturbating?” he asked.

Hitting back at those who don’t believe porn addiction exists, he added: “At least now I can take comfort in the fact that if I can control my urge to jerk off then I have developed a strong enough will power to beat an addiction that people blindly don’t even consider an addiction.”

“I still face the same urges I did 700 days ago, but I like to think that I’m much stronger now.”

“Happiness and satisfaction comes from within. Just let that void be. Don’t try to fill it with anything. That void within ourselves is what makes us human.”

“Have faith you guys. Faith in yourself. Stay strong!”

The post attracted almost 100 comments, with users praising his perspective.

“Sometimes, when you dont get the approval/gratification - you might turn to masturbation to ease The pain. Bad spiral,” responded Akt1.

"Inspiring words. I hope to go as far as you have, and beyond," wrote GrandmasterPants321.

The science of porn addiction and “rebooting” is a subject of debate among experts. Robert Weiss, senior vice president of Elements Behavioural Health, a US chain of clinics treating behavioural addictions, recently told The Independent that porn-induced erectile dysfunction is “absolutely” real.

“If you’re using the hyper-stimulation of internet porn as your sole means of experiencing arousal, you’re hitting your brain up with such a high level of dopamine, and such a high level of expectation around what sex is, then when you get into the real thing, which can be a little smelly, a little wet and a little uncomfortable, it’s like – I’d rather just look at my porn.”