Disclaimer: like most pedophiles, I have never approached a child with anything sexual or otherwise inapporpriate, and I don’t plan ever to do so. I recognize the harm in such actions, and I don’t want to hurt the very people I love. If you expect AMA with a child molester, this ain’t it.
The account is a throwaway, hope you’ll understand this decision given the sensitivity of the topic.
Edit: Thank you for keeping civil and genuine in your questions. I did envision hostility, yet here you are, amazing as always. Lemmy is a wonderful place to be, thanks to you all!
Edit 2: Apparently we have another brave pedophile here in the comments, and he came with a good note I should include in the post: if you find yourself attracted to minors, that’s okay. Acting on your desires is dangerous, but having them isn’t. If you’d like to have some support and/or community that would help you get your bearings or just listen without any prejudice (we’re all in the same boat), there are places that can help you. Visit VirPed (18+) or MAP Support Club (13+; scroll down for details), or refer to other resources through the MAP Resources website.
Are you seeing a therapist for this? If so, what treatment do you receive? Does it help?
I’m currently not seeing a therapist even though I’d like to - it’s nearly impossible to find a competent specialist in my area, and it’s getting harder as time goes on.
Therapy available online is completely unaffordable, with some specialist charging upwards to $200 for a session. That’s, like, half my monthly income (I live in not-so-rich country).
Why is it so hard to find a therapist- I can look online and find several people advertising lgbtq+ specialist in my area. Couldn’t someone like that help you? Oh, of course. Money.
edit: It seems I’ve offended the rainbow club by suggesting other sexualities be included in the alphabet soup. So much for “+”
The two issues are poorly linked, and experience of other pedophiles and generally minor-attracted people is very often strongly negative.
Unfortunately, a lot of therapists, even LGBTQ+ friendly ones (no strangers to non-traditional attractions, huh?) are completely unequipped to deal with the issue and can make it much worse.
That situation sounds extremely challenging. I can just imagine my own frustration if I went to a LGBTQ+ specialist with this only to be told they cant help me, or worse.
I wish you the best of luck.
Thank you! It means a lot.
That being said, I had one free session with a competent specialist once. Unfortunately, I cannot afford their help, but this one session was already very transformative, as it was the first time I was accepted, face to face, by someone who is not attracted to minors themselves. Got me through a lot of emotions then.
I hope we’ll have more of it, and I strongly believe a more understanding culture would be beneficial for everyone - including children who’ll be more safe.
I’m not OP, but I am a pedophile. I’m not seeing a therapist, and I haven’t seen a therapist for this exactly. I did try conversion therapy at one point because I didn’t want to be gay anymore. What I will say is I have done an immense amount of work on myself, I’ve read things and talked to friends… I have done the work of therapy essentially without a therapist. Once I got peer support for being a pedophile, everything else clicked into place, and I’ve been able to apply everything I learned and gained. It’s been amazing. I’m not afraid of myself anymore. I’m not afraid that one day I’ll slip up, I know that that won’t happen. I don’t think I have to kill myself or cut this part out of myself. I’m just okay. Right now a lot of my time and energy is put into supporting other people with their struggles. I find that very rewarding.
I also detailed in another response why it’s difficult and risky to seek therapy for this particular issue. It’s not all about the money. Therapists can out you or call the police on you even if you haven’t done anything and don’t plan to do anything. All they have to do is suspect that you might be a danger to kids.