I just read a rather large article on the cover the Sunday New York Times Review section about pornography and adolescents that basically summarized multiple studies as inconclusive at best. I have a first hand perspective having seen the effects of premature exposure to porn first hand in clinical practice with sex addiction. Pornography is addictive and harmful, especially to adolescents and young adults. I say this because I have listened to countless stories of desensitization and trouble with intimacy. Desensitization basically means that normal, healthy sex is boring and sometimes nearly impossible for people whose neurology has changed as a result of overexposure to porn. Watching more and more porn leads some people to view harder, stranger, and rougher material as their dopamine system seeks greater stimulation. read more

This picture is crinkled because The Sunday Review section of The New York Times traveled with me back from Los Angeles on a recent business trip. I took it with me because I agreed with Nicholas Kristof’s perspective on early intervention so much. As I have mentioned before, I worked at a Head Start Program (Federally mandated preschool for economically disadvantaged children) for three years in the late 90’s. I found the cycle of poverty, poor education, violence, and neglect among these children profoundly disturbing. What many middle upper class people don’t realize how far behind these children fall at such early ages and how much their emotional intelligence is impacted in early childhood. The Oklahoma experiment with mandated preschool for all four year olds and education for overwhelmed mothers sounds wonderful. I hope it succeeds and provides a model for other states! read more