In an interview with Howard Stern this week, Grammy award winning American singer Billie Eilish said that viewing pornography at a young age “destroyed her brain,” and seriously affected her early sexual experiences.
Eilish, who is now 19 and known for her baggy, minimally-revealing style of dress, said that pornography is “a disgrace,” adding that she was “angry” that the industry is so loved by society.
.@billieeilish says the only reason she began wearing baggy clothes was because 'I hated my body' https://t.co/hzXuwRrQpx
— Insider Entertainment (@insiderent) April 9, 2020
“As a woman, I think porn is a disgrace and I used to watch a lot of porn, to be honest,” she said.
“I started watching porn when I was, like, 11 and I didn’t understand why it was a bad thing. I thought that was how you learned to have sex. I was watching abusive porn, to be honest, when I was, like, 14.
“I was an advocate and thought I was one of the guys and would talk about it and thought I was cool for not having a problem with it.
“I think it really destroyed my brain and I feel incredibly devastated that I was exposed to so much porn.”
She went on to add that she eventually reached the point where she could not find sex appealing unless it was violent.
“It got to the point where I couldn’t watch anything else, unless it was violent I didn’t think it was attractive,” she said.
“I was a virgin. I had never done anything so it led to problems where the first few times I had sex I was not saying no to things that were not good and it’s because I thought that that was what I was supposed to be attracted to.
“I’m so angry that porn is so loved and I’m so angry at myself for thinking that it was OK and…it’s how so many people think they’re supposed to learn.
“It’s how so many men think they’re supposed to be and because in porn there’s no consent there’s a huge problem of consent and not just consent in having sex but consent during sex.”
While Eilish’s experience of pornography at the young age of 11 may seem shocking, it’s a common experience for Generation Z, even in Ireland.
According to a 2018 NUIG survey, over 53% of boys in Ireland first watched porn before the age of 13. Moreover, 23% of girls first encountered pornography between the ages of 10 and 13.
In fact, 70% of young Irish men and 15% of women watch porn on a weekly basis according to the same research.
While not every single young person who consumes pornography will be immediately and visibly harmed by it, the same could be said of drugs. It doesn’t negate the damage that these things do to many individuals.
According to Dr. June Clyde, a psychosexual and relationship therapist, there are men and boys as young as 19 or 20 in Ireland presenting with erectile dysfunction, as their overuse of pornography has totally numbed them to sexual experiences. As stated by Dr. Clyde and reported in the Irish Examiner:
“Dr Clyne says many relationships have ended because of porn. “Internet pornography use is becoming increasingly socially acceptable, so, maybe, this is one of the reasons why people are slow to connect their pornography viewing with their sexual difficulties. After all, ‘isn’t everyone watching it’?” She says that online pornography offers short-term pleasure, but results in long term problems, including erectile dysfunction, which may necessitate the early use of Viagra.
Nuala Deering says men of 19 and 20 who are experiencing erectile problems are often aware their use of porn has desensitised them and many of them want Viagra. “They may, initially, get a prescription from their GP, but often obtain it online, which is not safe practice.”
How to educate our youth about pornography addiction and dangers https://t.co/2QOuJ5kOzh pic.twitter.com/321kpDlIXR
— Irish Examiner (@irishexaminer) January 17, 2017
While the consumption of explicit or lewd content can do damage to young people, even being adjacent to it can be harmful.
Last month Irish-Bangladeshi model and TikTok star Shahira Barry said she had stopped using OnlyFans after it cost her “a few opportunities.”
Irish model Shahira Barry reveals she quit OnlyFans after it cost her a 'few opportunities' https://t.co/LVAQm63A5C
— Sunday World (@sundayworld) November 3, 2021
Notably, she reportedly spent eight months auditioning for a television programme, but lost out on the opportunity as her affiliation with OnlyFans was not “brand friendly.”
“I didn’t think there would be any repercussions in my life for joining,” she said.
“I joined OnlyFans during a pandemic when all my work had stopped and I was only active on it for a couple of months. I wasn’t doing porn,” she said.
However, even being associated for a short period with an x-rated website did apparent damage to her career.
These are stories and risks which virtually nobody talks about, and many young people often don’t hear of until it’s too late.
If you want to talk about a dangerous pandemic spreading like wildfire, this is it. Billie Eilish and Shahira Barry’s experiences are sadly all too common, and we as a society need to have a serious conversation about the normalisation of these harmful practices.