Hypersexuality
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
"The Love Council (1894) by Oskar Panizza is set in 1495, the first historically documented outbreak of syphilis and portrays the dreaded venereal disease as God’s vengeance on his sexually hyperactive human creatures, especially those surrounding Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia). The district attorney in Munich charged Panizza with 93 counts of blasphemy in violation of §166 of the Imperial Strafgesetzbuch (Criminal Code). Panizza served his full 12-month sentence at the prison in Amberg, where he was released in August 1896."--Sholem Stein |
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Hypersexuality is a desire for human sexual behavior at levels high enough to be considered clinically significant.
Hypersexuality is characterized by an impairing need for frequent genital stimulation that, when achieved, does not result in long-term emotional or sexual satisfaction. This dissatisfaction is what is believed to encourage the heightened frequency of sexual stimulation, as well as additional physiological and neurological symptoms.
The concept of hypersexuality replaces the older concepts of nymphomania (or furor uterinus) and satyriasis. Nymphomania was believed to be a psychological disorder characterized by an overactive libido and an obsession with sex. In males the disorder was called satyriasis (for etymology of the words, see nymph and satyr). "Nymphomania" and "satyriasis" are no longer listed as specific disorders in the DSM-IV.
The threshold for what constitutes hypersexuality is subject to debate, and critics question whether a standardized diagnostic threshold even exists. Sex drive varies widely in humans, and what one person would consider a "normal" sex drive might be considered excessive by some and low by others. The consensus among those who consider this a disorder is that the threshold is met when the behavior causes distress or impaired social functioning.
Associated conditions
People who suffer from bipolar disorder may often display tremendous swings in sex drive depending on their mood. As currently defined in the DSM, hypersexuality is a criterion symptom of hypomania and mania in bipolar disorder and mania in schizoaffective disorder.
Several neurological conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, various types of brain injury, Klüver-Bucy syndrome, Kleine-Levin syndrome, and many more neuro-degenerative diseases can cause hypersexual behavior. Importantly, at times, drugs could contribute to hypersexual behavior.
References
- Carol Groneman, Nymphomania: A History, (London: Fusion Press, 2001)
See also