I believe that when a man decides to move from the pre-reboot to the early reboot stage, he does so for one of three reasons:

• Love
• Duty
• Fear

These three forces are the primary driving factors that push us to take the action necessary to end our out-of-control behavior. We all end up here for one reason or another but 99% of the time that reason falls into one of the three categories above.

Today I want to focus on fear.

Whether it’s the primary driving force or not, most men arrive at the Porn Reboot program filled with fear. Porn accompanied you for a large portion of your life and the thought of letting it go is terrifying. What does a life without porn look like? How will you handle stress or boredom? What will you do when an urge arises? 

Pornography became your main coping skill over the years. Instead of using things like the gym, reading, or meditation to work through intense emotions or experiences, you turned to porn. That means most of the major events of your life were also coupled with porn use. Every big thing in your life has the hidden shadow of pornography behind it.

If you’re still young you may not realize the full extent of this yet. However, men who show up in their forties or fifties know exactly what I’m talking about. From getting married to launching businesses to making big career moves to having children, their porn use was always quietly along for the ride.

When these men finally make it to the Porn Reboot program, they’re terrified, and rightfully so. 

I had a conversation with a potential client a couple of weeks ago. He’s a very successful executive who spent many years repressing his out-of-control behavior. He never fully committed to any one program and always put work ahead of any attempt to end his behavior. He ended up on a call with one of my reboot strategists and they passed him along because they thought he could benefit from a direct call with me.

This man explained everything I just wrote about. He didn’t know how to experience anything in life, good or bad, without turning to porn. He’s in his mid-forties with multiple decades of porn addiction under his belt and no tools to handle the problem. He was paralyzed by the thought of a life without pornography, no matter how beautiful it may be.

This fear drives men to the program but also keeps them from fully engaging with the system. Working through this fear is an important part of the early stage of their reboot so they can move forward into the middle and late stages.

Another fear that brings men to the Porn Reboot program is the fear of pain. Our compulsive behaviors with porn, sex, and masturbation cause a lot of pain. They instill pain not only in our lives but the lives of those we care about whether they know it or not. Even if your wife or children aren’t aware of your porn use, they’re aware of your inability to fully engage in their lives. They’re aware that you aren’t present the majority of the time.

The pain of this reality brings men into calls with our reboot strategists every day. He doesn’t want to feel it anymore and he wants to stop causing his family pain, too. Fear of further pain is a strong motivator and can quickly push you from the pre-reboot to the early stage.

Another common fear I hear is the fear of exposure, of people finding out the truth about your behavior. Maybe you’re a pastor or youth group leader, maybe you’re an executive or C-suite employee, or maybe you’re the coach of your kid’s soccer team. No matter what level you’re at, there’s a ton of shame that comes with pornography addiction. The thought of people discovering what you do or the things you watch when you’re by yourself at night is horrifying.

This fear brings men into the program willing and ready to do just about anything to end their behavior with porn, sex, and masturbation. They can’t bear the thought of bringing shame to their wife and kids because of their behavior. The possibility of tainting the name of their business or company if someone found out about their addiction brings them to their knees.

So if fear brought you to the program, what exactly is that fear? What do you worry will happen or what has already happened that you fear will get worse? Fear is a powerful tool when it comes to ending your out-of-control behavior. But fear will only get you so far.

Fear is a good way to get into the program but you must take action to ensure you stay. I’ve talked with countless terrified men who eventually returned to the shadows of their addiction because they weren’t willing to commit to the work. They didn’t want to give up certain aspects of their life necessary for a successful reboot.

Fear is a motivator but it is not enough. No external force is enough to keep you engaged in the work required for reboot success. That driving force must come from within. You must reach a point during your reboot when it becomes about quitting for you, not for anyone else. When you’re ready to move past those fears and discover what you’re capable of, that’s when you find freedom in your reboot.

So, brother, what are you afraid of and what are you going to do to move through that and immerse yourself in the Porn Reboot system?