"Pornstalgia": Why You're Addicted to Vintage Porn
Ever wonder why you fall into a rabbit hole trying to find a clip from decades ago? In the age of HD cameras why do we still try and find that clip that was filmed on a calculator?
Why does pornstalgia happen?
Pornstalgia isn’t necessarily an unhealthy thing, it happens to everyone. If it isn’t causing a problem in your life then it is by definition “unproblematic”. If you do find yourself engaging in pornstalgia where it does impact your quality of life negatively by affecting your work or love life then you could benefit from a consultation with a mental health expert
First let’s try better understand this phenomenon.
We can break down pornstalgia (fixated search behavior for pornographic nostalgia)to 3 parts. The inception, the fixation and the let down
So we’ll start with…
The Inception Stage - Triggered Memories and Emotional Attachment
Typically, there is an external cue that triggers your memories and emotions of a previous pornographic experiences. For example watching an old movie, or a new performer that may resemble your former favourite. Sometimes triggers occur internally, where our own thoughts may trigger reminiscing of previous experiences.
One key factor is that pornography that you consumed earlier in your life, typically in adolescence or young adulthood is likely to have been extremely novel and salient. Due to this novelty at the time, we often find this more arousing and more exciting than the 1000th clip that you’ve seen last Wednesday.
In addition, you’re consuming this in a formative stage of your sexual identity and expression. Pleasure and excitement would have also been encoded with that particular stimulus.
This stimulus being your favorite performer or favorite clip from that era of your life.
So when we are “triggered”, we are driven to seek out similar content to recreate the emotions and sensations associated with this past experience and sometimes this leads to fixated search behavior. These memories are also reinforced through the release of neurotransmitters such as dopamine, which strengthens the pathway and behaviour associated with the emotional experience.
Once triggered, we then enter into…
The Fixation Stage - Reinforcement and Anticipation
Our brains are wired to seek out pleasurable experiences repeatedly. When you consume explicit content, the brain's reward system releases dopamine, reinforcing the association between the search behaviour, the specific nostalgic content, and the pleasurable sensations. This reinforcement creates a cycle of anticipation, where individuals anticipate the reward and are motivated to continue seeking similar content.
Anticipation of the pleasurable experience becomes a driving force behind fixated search behaviour. You also get incremental rewards as you continue your search and get more clues from some obscure forum or dodgy link.
You feel like you are getting close, and your dopamine spikes and motivates your search as you anticipate the reward. However, more often than not this fixation stage leads to the inevitable...
Source: Les Anderson, Unsplash
“Let Down” Stage - The Overestimation of Enjoyment
You may recall the pleasurable sensations and excitement associated with the explicit content, reinforcing the belief that engaging in fixated search behaviour will provide the same level of enjoyment as those years ago. But the reality is that you have been desensitized through the years and are no longer as innocent as you were all those years ago.
This leads to an overestimation of enjoyment.
This overestimation is also influenced by the brain's tendency to selectively remember positive experiences while downplay negative ones. This often leads to fixated search behaviour as individuals chase the perceived heightened pleasure that may not actually be attainable in reality.
Nevertheless, pornstalgia can create a powerful pull towards seeking out similar vintage content in an attempt to recreate this unattainable pleasure from previously novel that can be re-lived. Novelty seeking and diminished satisfaction are also additional factors that drive fixated search behaviour. Sometimes we experience an attachment to the performer but we also want to seek out novel experiences, such as searching for rare scenes that involve that performer.
Now that we’ve covered the three stages.
What else should we be wary about?
For some individuals, engaging in this behavior may serve as a coping mechanism. Providing temporary escape or relief from stress, anxiety, or other negative emotions they experience in their daily lives. The classic case is during exam period or preparing a presentation, where engaging in pornstalgia can be a potent procrastination tool.
We can see this as a form of experiential avoidance, that is trying to avoid distressing or negative emotions. If we do this repeatedly and depend on pornography as our primary method of coping then you’re at risk of developing a problem. Remember if you need help stopping, getting a professional is a great way to ensure a good outcome.
If you’re not sure if you’re using too much porn check out my article “how much porn is too much porn” or its video companion on Youtube
I’m Luke Vu. Be kind, be you. Catch you next time