Man's crippling porn addiction spiralled into watching child sexual abuse after he started watching at seven

Warning: This article contains discussion of child abuse which some readers may find distressing.

When Bradley (not his real name) first Googled male and female body parts at the tender age of seven, he had no idea this innocent curiosity would spiral into a crippling addiction.

Over the years, his interest in adult content grew, eventually becoming a 'safe haven'. But by the time he was a teenager, it had morphed and metastasised into an obsession that saw him spending 'up to eight hours a day' searching for porn.

He and school friends would often chat about what they had all been watching the night before, about who their favourite pornstars were, creating a dangerous 'echo chamber' around him.

But Bradley never told his friends just how much content he was consuming... or how extreme.

"I was spending hours watching porn, sometimes to up to eight hours a night and over time, the same videos became boring. I was getting desensitised to it," he tells LADbible.

"I'd always be looking for that new high, that new rush, and sometimes it would just be going for a different skin colour, different age, a different genre.

"And then it would progress into something that was really extreme."

His case might sound unique, but a recent study by child protection charity the Lucy Faithfull Foundation found that more than half of young men aged 18 to 24 have worried about how much porn they watch.

Data from LADbible's recent 'For F**k's Sake' campaign found that 49 per cent of Gen Z men use porn as their main source of sex education, with 70 per cent admitting it's their first exposure to sex.

And Bradley did actually look for help, turning to the internet for answers as to whether his behaviour was 'normal', only to be met by reassurance that it's 'perfectly fine' for a young, teenage boy to be looking at that kind of stuff.

From the outside, though, this twenty-something's life looked just that, 'perfectly fine', he had a six-figure job, he seemed well adjusted and confident, there was nothing wrong, was there?

But while Bradley doesn't recall the exact moment he crossed the line from 'normal' into the disturbing world of illegal content that saw him arrested and charged for watching child sexual abuse, he remembers what it felt like.

"It was like going to marijuana all the way up to crack cocaine, and suddenly the high was just 10 times bigger," he admits. "You'd feel great in that moment, and then the next moment you're on a comedown, which was very soon after.

"It's almost like when you when you eat KFC, it feels great in the moment, but the moment you finish that last monthful, you just sit there and regret thinking, what have I just eaten?"

Bradley would be left questioning himself, asking, 'Have I really just done this? I'm a horrible person', admitting the 'shame circle' would then repeat and he'd find himself doing it all over again.

This toxic cycle continued until the day of his arrest, when he was handed a leaflet for Lucy Faithfull's Stop It Now helpline, which ended up being the first call he made upon his release.

Bradley was blown away when he called the helpline, admitted everything he had been doing, and was met with support rather than judgement - something he says has enabled him to turn his life around, having been in recovery for around three years now.

With a suspended sentence, Bradley set away doing the work, with immense support from the charity, attending Sex Addicts Anonymous groups several times a week and going to therapy, which has helped him uncover some of the root causes behind his addiction.

"I didn't realise until very recently I had a lot of abandonment issues, and a codependency I wasn't aware of," he explains. "I needed the validation from others. I was lonely and I wanted love, care and support, and I didn't really get that that much."

Bradley also believes being autistic and having a 'rocky' relationship with his mum, who had a 'short fuse' growing up, also contributed to him isolating himself with his computer and pornography.

He also struggled watching his friends getting into relationships and physical affection, something he desperately craved, revealing the only place he felt he could get that was in the 'fantasy world' he had created, where he would convince himself he was the one in the videos he was watching.

Now, life looks very different for Bradley, who doesn't access any kind of porn, and says his urges have turned to a desire to meet someone and have a partner and relationship of his own.

"I'm no longer urging to go and watch one woman and five guys online," he says. "Instead I want to find one woman and take her to Five Guys on a date."

Bradley is sharing his story in a bid to help other young men avoid the same path and to raise awareness that help is out there, no matter how much shame and fear they might feel about speaking up.

"Support is out there and most people will find the strength to seek that support when their life has been taken away from them, but I want people to reach out before that happens," he assures.

In the past year, the UK government has taken steps to prevent children from falling into the same habits as Bradley, with the introduction of the Online Safety Bill — something both Bradley and the Lucy Faithfull Foundation support — but there is still more to be done.

"I think ultimately we need more discussion around pornography and the effects it has," said Bradley. "And if people are feeling a certain way, not to shun them and make them feel like monsters, but to hold their hand and say, 'if you don't want to feel this way, come with us and we'll help you.'

"And if people don't want help, then they'll have to accept the consequences."

If you are concerned about your own sexual behaviours, you can speak to someone anonymously, over the phone or using the live chat, on Lucy Faithfull Foundation's Stop It Now helpline at https://www.stopitnow.org.uk/

If you're a parent or guardian and are concerned about your child's behaviour online or in real life, or just need support on how to keep your child safe, you can also get support via the helpline.