Sex addiction is an illness that can be treated with drugs therapy and counseling, a New Taipei City-based psychologist said on Tuesday, after Taiwanese-American musician Wang Leehom’s (王力宏) alleged infidelities sparked a week-long public debate.
Wang’s estranged wife, Lee Jing-lei (李靚蕾), has accused him of having extramarital affairs and sex with prostitutes, saying that he is addicted to sex, after Wang on Wednesday wrote on Facebook that the couple is getting divorced.
While Taiwanese and other Asian societies rarely discuss or acknowledge sex addiction, the condition is frequently invoked by Western celebrities and politicians embroiled in scandals, said Yang Tsung-tsair (楊聰財), who runs a mental health clinic in Sindian District (新店).
Photo: Screen grab from YouTube
Signs of sex addiction include being prone to infidelity, habitually seeking the services of prostitutes and feeling controlled by sexual urges, he said.
People with the condition might compulsively seek new sexual partners on a monthly basis, or experience restlessness that affects their ability to work or have a normal life, Yang said.
Although sex addiction affects men and women, the disorder is more prevalent in men, and the onset of symptoms typically occurs between ages 20 and 50, he said.
Sex addiction is often accompanied by narcissistic or histrionic personality disorders, which are linked to an unhappy or love-deprived childhood, especially a lack of rapport with their mother, Yang said.
As adults, those people might seek sexual relationships as a means to alleviate loneliness, he said.
The region of the hypothalamus known as the “pleasure center” is activated by enjoyable activities such as exercising, accomplishing goals, eating or having sex, he said.
Sex addicts predominantly rely on the latter for pleasure, he added.
People with the disorder can control their urges with the help of drugs that restore hormonal and emotional imbalances, and cognitive-behavioral therapy that corrects their approach to sex, relationships and emotional management patterns, he said.
Hong Kong-based American singer-songwriter Khalil Fong (方大同) has passed away at the age of 41, Fong’s record label confirmed yesterday. “With unwavering optimism in the face of a relentless illness for five years, Khalil Fong gently and gracefully bid farewell to this world on the morning of February 21, 2025, stepping into the next realm of existence to carry forward his purpose and dreams,” Fu Music wrote on the company’s official Facebook page. “The music and graphic novels he gifted to the world remain an eternal testament to his luminous spirit, a timeless treasure for generations to come,” it said. Although Fong’s
China’s military buildup in the southern portion of the first island chain poses a serious threat to Taiwan’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply, a defense analyst warned. Writing in a bulletin on the National Defense and Security Research’s Web site on Thursday, Huang Tsung-ting (黃宗鼎) said that China might choke off Taiwan’s energy supply without it. Beginning last year, China entrenched its position in the southern region of the first island chain, often with Russia’s active support, he said. In May of the same year, a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) force consisting of a Type 054A destroyer, Type 055 destroyer,
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) was questioned by prosecutors for allegedly orchestrating an attack on a taxi driver after he was allegedly driven on a longer than necessary route in a car he disliked. The questioning at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office was ongoing as of press time last night. Police have recommended charges of attempted murder. The legally embattled actor — known for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代) — is under a separate investigation for allegedly using fake medical documents to evade mandatory military service. According to local media reports, police said Wang earlier last year ordered a
Taiwan is planning to expand the use of artificial intelligence (AI)-based X-ray imaging to customs clearance points over the next four years to curb the smuggling of contraband, a Customs Administration official said. The official on condition of anonymity said the plan would cover meat products, e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products, large bundles of banknotes and certain agricultural produce. Taiwan began using AI image recognition systems in July 2021. This year, generative AI — a subset of AI which uses generative models to produce data — would be used to train AI models to produce realistic X-ray images of contraband, the official
RSS